For the past 15 years, John Dobbs, the owner of Paddy Murphy’s in downtown Bangor, has been lowering a huge beach ball adorned with string lights from the rooftop of his restaurant. However, this year, he’s passing the torch to the younger generation of New Year’s Eve celebrants.
Now, the New Year’s Eve ball drop will occur on the rooftop of 6 Central St., located at the intersection of Hammond and Central streets. This building is currently home to Wabanaki Public Health & Wellness, just a stone’s throw away from Paddy Murphy’s.
The ball drop is the highlight of the Downtown Bangor Partnership’s Downtown Countdown celebration. In previous years, this event has featured live music, activities for kids, theater, comedy, and various entertainment leading up to the stroke of midnight. This unique tradition began back in 2004 when a local lawyer named Steven Smith, on a whim, decorated a beach ball with Christmas lights and rolled it off the rooftop of 26 Main St., a building he owned with his wife at the time.
John Dobbs, who opened Paddy Murphy’s in 2007 and later acquired 26 Main St. in 2009, has been overseeing the ball drop since then. The event has grown significantly over the years, with the crowd swelling from a few hundred attendees in 2004 to a peak of over 4,000 in 2015. Last year, approximately 2,000 people attended.
Dobbs expressed his love for the city of Bangor and noted how incredible it has been to witness the expansion of this event since taking it over in 2009. He added, “We are ready to pass it on and become spectators ourselves. Passing events on is good and breathes new life into established events.”
In late 2022, Wabanaki Public Health & Wellness moved into 6 Central St., where they are currently renovating most of the building to include a public-accessible cultural center. The offices of this nonprofit organization, which serves Maine’s four federally recognized Native American tribes, are already up and running.
Bev Uhlenhake, chief development officer for Sky Villa Properties, the company that owns 6 Central St., expressed excitement about the building’s prime location in the heart of downtown Bangor, calling it “the corner of Main and Main” in real estate terms. She believes there couldn’t be a better spot in Bangor to ring in the new year.
This year’s Downtown Countdown will feature children’s activities at the Bangor Public Library and the Maine Discovery Museum, live music at various bars and venues, a special hair metal-themed performance at the Penobscot Theatre, and more events to be announced. For additional information, you can visit downtownbangor.com.
