Thousands of people filled downtown Fort Myers streets Oct. 3 for Art Walk, marking its 18th season. The free festival on the first Friday of every month from 5 to 9 p.m. has been a River District mainstay since local gallery owners started the tradition in October 2008.
The event, along with Music Walk held every third Friday and other seasonal festivals, is now managed by the nonprofit Downtown Management Corporation of Fort Myers Inc., doing business as the River District Alliance. The organization receives partial funding from the city, as well as from sponsors, vendors, beer sales, donations and grants.
Fort Myers City Council on Oct. 6 agreed to provide $288,500 in funding for the RDA’s events for fiscal year 2026.
The RDA’s two employees, President and CEO Lisa Sbuttoni and Event Coordinator Lauri Langone, coordinate the two monthly Walks along with other festivals on New Year’s Eve, July 4 and St. Patrick’s Day.
“The entire city benefits, as we hear many people tell us that our monthly events are a big reason they moved to this area,” Langone wrote in an email.
Vendors and artists line the streets of the Fort Myers River District for the Oct. 3 Art Walk.
The events often include new or rotating features. In November, Art Walk will add a children’s entrepreneurship section, and in December an artisan market, alongside its regular programming.
“We constantly look to how to keep it fun and fresh and different,” Sbuttoni said.
Other than a hiatus in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic and events lost to hurricanes in recent years, it has continued nearly unabated, becoming among the defining characteristics of a district that continues to see rapid growth.
When Art Walk began in 2008, the city was completing a transformative downtown streetscape and utility replacement project as gallery and business owners sought events to draw visitors to the area. Art Walk co-founders Andy Howl and Jamie Kuser, along with other gallerists, such as Claudia Goode, David Acevedo and Terry Tincher, were among the group that kicked off the tradition.
Over the years, galleries have come, gone and evolved. Tincher’s Space 39 is now an art-themed bar, Goode’s Arts for Act Gallery is still a First Street mainstay and Howl’s HOWL gallery and tattoo shop is now just down U.S. 41 in Midtown.
The Sidney & Berne Davis Art Center has become a destination, scheduling exhibition openings such as its current Dark Art 2025 to coincide with Art Walk. On those nights, police block off the streets and crews clean up afterward. In addition to restaurants, galleries and shops, Art Walk on Oct. 3 featured about 70 vendors, painters, musicians, magicians and a dance troupe that performed to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” at First Street and Hendry Street’s central square. Diners seated outside at Sip & Sizzle restaurant and bar had front row seats to the show but were blocked by a standing crowd.
A magician entertains visitors with a card trick during Art Walk in downtown Fort Myers.
“We support Art Walk for a multitude of reasons,” said Sip & Sizzle Manager Alex Kahn. “It obviously drives foot traffic through (downtown), so our revenue always increases on these nights of Art Walk and Music Walk.”
The gelato, crepes and waffle shop Belgian Yummies on First Street, also saw a boost from Art Walk. It is open 11 a.m. to 10 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
“That was one of my best days,” said owner Benjamin Storms, who opened three months ago.
On Oct. 6, Fort Myers City Council members also approved $65,000 for Florida Arts Inc. (Sidney & Berne Davis Center), $25,000 for the yearly festival ArtFest Fort Myers and $50,000 for The Florida Repertory Company Inc.
“We know there’s a boost to the economy when we invest in arts and culture,” Lee County Alliance for the Arts Executive Director Neil Volz told council members.
A visitor enjoys the festive atmosphere at Art Walk in downtown Fort Myers.
A national 2023 study by Americans for the Arts found that in fiscal year 2022, Fort Myers nonprofit and cultural organizations and their visitors spent $98.7 million, generating $17.4 million in local, state and federal tax revenue and providing 1,932 jobs. Surveys of those who attended in-person arts and culture events in Fort Myers in 2022 and 2023 found that they spent $40.43 per person on average, accounting for $48.3 million of the total spending. They spent the most on food and drinks, followed by shopping, hotels and transportation. Alliance for the Arts partnered with the study’s organizers to identify 116 eligible organizations. Twenty-six nonprofits participated, suggesting the findings were understated.
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