OCEAN CITY — Charge your phones and bring your chairs, as Ocean City’s summer concert series at Northside Park wraps up on Sept. 4, with a final concert by “The Janitors.” In addition to the normal purchasable amenities at Sundaes in the Park, including making your own sundae and other frozen treats, the event will feature a new Pokemon GO event for the 2016 finale.
Pokémon GO is the phone app that took the world by storm this summer with users capturing, training and battling Pokémon creatures all over Ocean City and elsewhere. The app requires players to get off the couch and travel near and far to find Pokémon, supplies and battle locations called Gyms. To get the needed supplies in the game, players must also locate Pokestops or make in-app purchases. It just so happens the Northside Park at 125th Street bayside is a hotbed for Pokestops with 21 locations located in and around the park.
The town’s Special Events Department will “light up the park” by placing and maintaining lures at every Pokestop between 7 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. Pokémon will be easy to find along with precious supplies.
“Typically Pokestops become unavailable after you receive your goods but don’t let that stop you,” said Special Events Director Frank Miller. “Once you make your way around the park to the many other Pokestops, the original Pokestops have refreshed and can be visited again.”
Northside Park also contains two Pokémon Gyms. For this final concert event, the Pokémon gym located on the pier will not be accessible due to fireworks setup. The second gym located at the West Lagoon field will be open for battling. The town will also set up special phone charging stations at key locations around the park for players.
“Event participants are reminded to bring back up battery and charging cables,” Miller said. “We will have outlets to plug into around the park where you can also be in reach of Pokestops for guests to charge and play at the same time.”
Miller also recommends wearing comfortable shoes, bringing cash for on-site concessions, packing your bag chairs and planning to stay for the 9 p.m. fireworks show. The Sundaes in the Park event and concert begins at 7 p.m. and ends at 9 p.m. with the fireworks finale.
Northside Park contains miles of walking paths, a playground, sports fields and picnic pavilion, workout area, seasonal paddle boarding concession, lagoon and will also have softball tournaments taking place that evening to enjoy. Events are subject to weather.