By NEAL WAGNER / Managing Editor

ALABASTER – Shelby County’s largest festival is set to kick off summer at a new location during the first Saturday in June, and will feature a day full of activities for visitors of all ages.

Alabaster CityFest will be held throughout the day on Saturday, June 2, at the new Thompson High School campus at 1921 Warrior Parkway. This year marks the first venue change for the festival in its 15-year history, as CityFest traditionally was held in the city’s Municipal Park.

Visitors will enter the festival from the Thompson Road entrance to the new THS campus, and will enjoy more space for parking, vendors and enjoying the day’s activities, event organizers said.

Delta Rae, alt-country rockers from Durham, N.C., will highlight the afternoon lineup at 5:30 p.m. Their recent release features the hit single “No Peace in Quiet” and a cover of the harmony-laden classic “Seven Bridges Road.”

The Gin Blossoms will take the CityFest main stage at 7 p.m., followed by 38 Special performing at 9 p.m. Title sponsors for the 2018 CityFest are Central State Bank and Coca-Cola.

Other acts on the main stage will include Sanchez Tanniehill at 10:30 a.m., Andy Stokes at 1 p.m., Michael Warren at 3 p.m., The Brook and the Bluff at 2 p.m. and Martin McDaniel at 4:15 p.m.. The event will also feature familiar CityFest offerings, such as the KidsFest area, food and craft vendors and a drive-in car show.

The event is free for all visitors, as the cost of putting the event on each year is covered by CityFest’s sponsors.

Public parking areas will fill in the following order: The new Thompson High School, the old THS, Warrior Park and then Larry Simmons Stadium. Free shuttles will begin picking up at the old THS once the new THS parking lot is full, and will begin picking up from Warrior Park once the old THS lot is full. Once Warrior Park is full, the shuttles will begin picking up from Larry Simmons Stadium.