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New Details Announced For St. Louis' 250th Birthday Celebration

(Kate Essig/St. Louis Public Radio)
Mayor Francis Slay (left) stands with Tom and Carol Voss, co-chairs of stl250, and Erin Budde, (center right) stl250 Executive Director.

St. Louis turns 250 in 2014, and to celebrate, stl250 has planned an entire year of birthday celebrations. On Monday, the volunteer led non-profit announced the final plans for its signature events. 

The birthday celebration begins on New Years Eve at Grand Center's First Night, where attendees can celebrate by making birthday hats, recording birthday wishes and decorating cupcakes.

From February 14-17, St. Louisans can look forward to Birthday Celebration Weekend commemorating the city's founding on February 15, 1764. Features of the weekend include a  family friendly birthday bash at the Missouri History Museum, a birthday ball for the adults, and a ‘Burnin Love’ Festival in Forest Park with live music, fireworks and the temporary installation of a 25 foot heart on fire. 

Throughout the year, 250 four-foot fiberglass cakes decorated by local artists will be stationed at St. Louis heritage sites. Two hundred of the cakes’ destinations will be chosen by stl250, but the public is invited to vote for the location of the remaining 50 cakes.

Mayor Francis Slay, a co-host of the celebration year, said he's looking forward to the region coming together to celebrate St. Louis. 

“This’ll be the biggest birthday celebration we’ll see in our lifetimes," Slay said. "It gives an opportunity to reflect on the past and what we are as a city, and also to look forward to the future, and hopefully inspire us for an even better future.”

For a complete list of events planned for St. Louis' 250th birthday, visit stl250's event calendar

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