Minnesota summer staples welcoming back patrons in 2021
6/16/2007---A sea of runners take off at the start of GrandmaÕs Marathon in Saturday morning in Two Harbors MN. (Photo by Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via Getty Images) ((Photo by Jerry Holt/Star Tribune via Getty Images) / Getty Images)
(FOX 9) - Some staples of Minnesota summer appear to be returning in 2021 after Gov. Tim Walz announced a loosening of COVID-19 restrictions Thursday.
Soon after the Governor’s announcement to remove capacity limits for outdoor events and ending curfews for bars and restaurants (with another loosening of restrictions starting as early as May 28) Duluth’s Grandma’s Marathon and Shakopee’s Twin Cities Summer Jam both announced their events have been given the green light.
Here are some other summer events welcoming back patrons in Minnesota this year:
Grandma’s Marathon
From June 17-19, Grandma’s Marathon will run in Duluth. Event organizers say changes to the annual marathon’s usual format will be announced in the coming days.
Twin Cities Summer Jam
South of the Twin Cities, in Shakopee, the Twin Cities Summer Jam announced its three-day event will go on with headliners Zac Brown Band, Carrie Underwood and Lyndrd Skynrd. Summer Jam runs from July 22-24.
Minnesota State Fair
Last week, Walz hinted that this year’s Minnesota State Fair will be "pretty close" to normal in late August.
"I think for us the touchstone place is State Fair, everything looks to me on the horizon the way the vaccine is going and the way is the virus is responding that that should be a pretty close to normal event," said Walz at a Friday afternoon press conference.
This week, fair officials announced it would host a five-day "Kickoff to Summer at the Fair" event over Memorial Day weekend, which will features some fair favorites opening their doors for a dry run.
First Avenue
Famed Minneapolis music venue First Avenue said it is now starting to fill its calendar for fall, winter and next spring. Spokesperson Ashley Ryan says the business is pleasantly surprised that they are able to book talent for this summer, too.
First Avenue says this summer will be a big opportunity for local bands to shine while plans are made for tours coming in from out of state.
Minnesota sports
In the world of sports, Minnesota’s teams will all have different restrictions depending on the size of their respective stadiums. Click here for a full breakdown.
At Target Field, the Twins can determine how quickly they want to ramp up to full capacity. Before the season began, they teased that as many as 10,000 fans could safely return to the ballpark.
At Allianz Field, the Loons are allowing up to 4,100 fans at each match. Similarly, it will be up to them how many fans can attend games under the Governor’s new order.
The Wild can host up to 3,000 fans, but will soon be able to up that to 5,500 under the new guidelines.
The Timberwolves and Lynx can have up to 5,000 fans under the loosened restrictions.
The 3M Championship has not announced plans for fans for its late July PGA Tour event.
10,000 fans return to TCF Bank Stadium for Gophers' spring football game
The University of Minnesota football team held its 2021 spring football game on Saturday, after last year's game was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Tickets for the game were limited to 10,000 -- and they were gone in about two hours – so those who got in were well spaced out around TCF Bank Stadium.
The Vikings and Gophers, which don’t kick off until fall, have not announced their plans for fans yet.