by Jonathan Swindle Every October, the Great Lawn fills up with folding tables, canopies, hand-lettered signs and the smell of kettle corn, and for five hours Corpus Christi’s queer community and its neighbors shop, eat, register to vote, get a tarot reading and run into half the people they know. That is the Block Party, and it is built almost entirely by local vendors.
We are looking for those vendors again. The 2026 Pride Parade and Block Party is Saturday, October 3, 2026, with the parade stepping off at 4:30 PM on Shoreline Blvd. by Water’s Edge Park and the Block Party running 5:00 PM to 10:00 PM on the Great Lawn at Water’s Edge Park. Applications are open now and close September 30, 2026.
What the 2025 Block Party looked like
Last year’s Block Party, on October 4, 2025, had 47 public vendor listings and four food trucks. What made it work was the mix. You could get dinner, buy a birthday present, pick up a resource you actually needed and play a round of bean bag toss in the space of one lap around the lawn.
Food trucks
Four trucks handled the dinner rush. Chelitos Delights served mini tacos, flautas, lonches and quesadillas. Lone Star Hawaiian Ice ran the full range from snow ice and mangonadas to brisket sandwiches, nachos and Frito pie. 2V Fruit Cups & Snacks brought fruit cups, aguas frescas, acai bowls and fresas con crema, and Raging Ice & More kept the shaved ice coming. On an early-October evening on the bayfront, the lines for cold things are long and cheerful.
Local businesses
Nineteen local businesses set up booths. Fulton Kettle Corn and Lemon Shakers took care of snacks and fresh-squeezed lemonade. Fashaholics brought clothing and statement pieces for anyone still putting an outfit together. Pawsitive Style Pet Boutique stocked pet clothing and accessories in every size, which is exactly the kind of booth that turns a walk-by into a conversation. Blossoming Lotus paired wire-wrapped crystal jewelry and stones with tarot readings at the table, and Cricket Wireless ran a bean bag toss with prizes. Karlyle Tomms, Author sold books and talked with readers about his novels.
Makers
Some of the most-photographed booths were the handmade ones. Clover and Leaf brought woodworking — cutting boards, pens, bowls, jewelry boxes — alongside cross-stitched wall hangings. Chloe’s Creations had handcrafted jewelry and accessories. My Wicked Art filled a table with 3D prints, collector cards, Pride novelties, bottle cap charms and magnets. Christinas Dreams made dreamcatchers and brittle. These are the booths people come back to the next year looking for by name.
Nonprofits and civic groups
Thirteen nonprofits took part. Coastal Bend Wellness Foundation parked its mobile testing unit on site for free, confidential sexual health screenings. The Art Museum of South Texas ran a hands-on art activity. Equality Texas had a prize wheel and information about its work across the state, and South Texas Family Planning and Health Corporation shared clinic locations and services. Affirming congregations including St. Paul UCC and the Unitarian Universalist Church of Corpus Christi had tables, and Texas Rising and the Nueces County Democratic Party registered voters.
Put all of that on one lawn with the stage going and you get the thing we actually want: a crowd that came for the music and left having met their neighbors, found a clinic, bought a cutting board and eaten a mangonada.
Applying for 2026
One application covers both entering the parade and vending at the Block Party, so if you want to do both, you fill out the form once. Applications opened June 1, 2026 and close September 30, 2026.
Block Party vendor fees
- Local Arts & Crafts — $30
- Small Non-Profit, 10′ x 10′ booth space — $50
- Small Non-Profit expanded booth, 20′ x 10′ — $75
- Large Non-Profit Organization (100+ employees) — $140
- Large Non-Profit Organization expanded booth, 20′ x 10′ — $185
- For Profit, 10′ x 10′ booth space — $85
- For Profit expanded booth, 20′ x 10′ — $125
- Political Candidate — $45
- Food Truck — $150
- Sponsor — complimentary
If you are a maker selling what you make yourself, look closely at the Local Arts & Crafts rate. It is the most affordable way onto the lawn, and those booths are a real part of what the Block Party is.
How food truck spaces work
Food trucks don’t pick a spot. Spaces in the food truck area come with power hook-ups and are first come, first served on the day, so plan your arrival accordingly rather than asking us to hold a particular space. The food truck fee is $150.
Parade entry fees, if you also want to march
Entering the parade is priced separately by category: $80 for a commercial business, $60 for a small non-profit, $80 for a medium non-profit and $120 for a large non-profit, $60 for faith-based organizations and $75 for a political candidate. Sponsors, entertainment and performance groups, school and student groups, and solo individuals or families walking are free. Staging opens at 2:00 PM and the parade steps off at 4:30 PM.
Where to apply
Start with the application form, and read the vendor guide before you fill it in — it covers booth setup, what you bring and what we provide. If you are marching as well, the participant guide covers the parade side. You can also read more about the Block Party and the parade on their event pages.
A few practical notes
Watching the parade and attending the Block Party are free, and the Block Party is all ages with no ticket needed. That is the audience you are setting up in front of: families, first-timers, people who have been coming for years, and people who wandered over from the seawall because they heard music.
The 2026 Grand Marshals are Brittany Andrews, with Ellison Powers as Emerging Leader Grand Marshal; you can read about them on the Grand Marshals page. This year’s title sponsor is Hicks Family Subaru.
If you have been thinking about it since last October, this is the year. Get your application in before September 30 and we will see you on the Great Lawn.