WOODVILLE – For many clever kids on the internet, “woot” used to be an exclamation to signify good things. Nowadays, “Woot!” is an online retailer, operating under the Amazon banner and known for irreverent, fun marketing.
Woot! will be in Woodville for the Saturday, July 11 Second Saturday event on the square, according to mayor Amy Bythewood.
Bythewood said that Woot! is paying for luxury porta-potty facilities for the event and will pay for any overtime expenditures for law enforcement personnel to work the event. Additionally, Bythewood said representatives from Woot! will be in town next week to distribute their famous “bags of crap,” which are assortments of random items, and can be anything from one single shoe to a smart watch, Bythewood said.
The event also coincides with the business’s 22nd birthday, and according to city administrator Stephen Ramos, Woot! is also offering to pay for any decorations, sourced from Amazon.
The council approved the street closure for Second Saturday on July 11, along with a variance for amplified sound for the hours of 2 p.m. through 10 p.m.
Bythewood deadpanned after presenting information about Woot! to council, “It’s kind of exciting,” before saying, with a smile, “Okay, it’s very exciting.”
Alderwoman Kelly Dillard made the motion to approve the street closure for the July 11 event with the timeframe as 2 p.m. to 10 p.m., and for the remainder of the monthly events from September through November to have Charlton Street closed from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Bythewood said before discussion began about the ordinance variance that the city’s ordinances “sometimes can be a little ambiguous,” and part of the confusion in previous discussions centered around the ability for vendors to be on the square during an event with a street closure, whether under an umbrella nonprofit organization or if all vendors had to be nonprofits.
The Second Saturday organizers are working toward acquiring 501 c.3 nonprofit status, Bythewood said.
Juneteenth recognized
Bythewood read a proclamation honoring June 19 as Juneteenth within the city of Woodville. The day celebrates the date in 1865 when Union troops arrived in Galveston to enforce the Emancipation Proclamation, and is also known as “Emancipation Day,” Bythewood said.
Bythewood’s proclamation articulated the history of the celebration, as well as the importance of remembering subsequent civil rights victories for Black Americans.
Woodville businessman and civic leader Kendall Coleman was at the meeting to accept the proclamation, and to brief council on a free community-wide Juneteenth event he is organizing.
The council approved a street closure and amplified sound variance for the event, from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Coleman said there will be plenty of food, live music and family friendly fun. The streets affected are Willis Street, Black Gum Street and Veterans Way. The closure is to allow for the public to be able to walk and enjoy themselves at the event, Coleman said, and will not affect anyone’s ability
