Good morning, Mesa.
The heat isn't going anywhere this weekend, so a lot of this list is indoors or after dark.
- 🍜 Asian food night market Saturday on West Broadway. All Asian food vendors plus an anime marketplace at 1920 W Broadway Road.
- ⚽ World Cup matches on the big screen. Mesa Public Library Main is screening tournament games all weekend, free.
- 🎤 Comedy, open mic, and family game day. Stand-up at The Bridge, an open mic downtown, and board games at Dobson Ranch.
- 🏠 Mesa homes are sitting about 55 days. The pace has slowed from earlier this year.
- 🚸 A slower Mesa Drive is on the July 20 council agenda. Along with the downtown ice rink contract and the property tax rate.
- 🏫 The MPS board meets tonight. And the city moves to renew police resource officers in Mesa schools.
- 🎸 Bigger stages around the Valley. Aurelio Voltaire in Mesa, Streetlight Manifesto in Tempe, and the Mercury hosting the Fever.
A night market built around Asian food and anime
A free night market of all Asian food vendors and an anime-themed marketplace sets up Saturday on the west side, off Broadway.
Key facts:
- What: all Asian food vendors, plus a local marketplace leaning into anime merchandise
- Where: 1920 W Broadway Road
- When: Saturday, July 11
- Cost: free to walk in
It's a west Mesa food-and-market night rather than a downtown one, which is a different crowd than the usual Main Street lineup. Bring cash for the vendors.
The weekend
What's on around the city between now and Sunday.
- ⚽ World Cup on the big screen at Main Library. Free public viewings all weekend: France vs Morocco Thursday at 1 PM, a match Friday at noon, and Norway vs England Saturday at 2 PM. Details.
- 🎤 Thursday: Powerful Voices Open Mic. Music, comedy, and poetry on one bill in Mesa tonight. Details.
- 😂 Friday: Act Out at The Bridge Improv Theater. Stand-up followed by improv, billed unfiltered. Details.
- 🎲 Saturday: game day at Dobson Ranch. Cards and board games for all ages at the Dobson Ranch library, 10 AM to noon. Details.
Mesa libraries are also busy today with a teen Spider-Man watch party, Disney music bingo for kids at Dobson Ranch, and an adult puzzle mixer at THINKspot.
Around Mesa
- 🏠 The housing market. Mesa homes are taking about 55 days to sell right now.
- 🚸 A slower Mesa Drive. A proposed ordinance drops the limit from 40 to 35 mph between Bates Street and Lehi Road, and from 35 to 30 mph north of Bates to the city limits, on the Transportation Advisory Board's recommendation. It goes to council July 20 (District 1).
- ⛸️ The downtown ice rink is coming back. Council votes July 20 on the contract to build, run, and remove the seasonal outdoor rink at the Plaza at Mesa City Center for Merry Main Street.
- 💵 Property tax rate. Also on the July 20 agenda: council sets the city's secondary property tax rate for the fiscal year ending June 2027.
From the schools
- 🏫 MPS Governing Board meets tonight. The district board convenes Thursday at 6 PM. Board meetings are open to the public.
- 👮 Officers in schools. The city is moving to renew its agreement with Mesa Public Schools to keep Mesa police officers working as school resource officers. It's on the July 20 council agenda. Details.
Around the Valley
Bigger stages this weekend, starting right here in Mesa.
Aurelio Voltaire. The Rosetta Room, Mesa. Friday, July 10 at 7 PM. Dark-cabaret songwriter with a devoted following. An intimate room for a cult act. Tickets.
Streetlight Manifesto. Marquee Theatre, Tempe. Friday, July 10 at 7:30 PM. The ska-punk mainstay still fills a room on horns alone. Tickets.
Los Texmaniacs. Musical Instrument Museum Music Theater, Phoenix. Thursday, July 9 at 7:30 PM. Grammy-winning Tex-Mex conjunto in the right-sized room. Tickets.
Phoenix Mercury vs. Indiana Fever. Mortgage Matchup Center, Phoenix. Thursday, July 9 at 7 PM. The Fever only swing through Phoenix a couple of times a season. Tickets.