Seventh Annual Port Jefferson Ice Festival Draws Crowds for Live Carvings

Port Jefferson Village filled with crowds as the Port Jefferson Ice Festival ran Feb. 14–15, turning Main Street and East Main Street into a winter gallery of roughly 30 ice sculptures and live demonstrations by Rich Daly of Ice Memories in Mastic Beach. The seventh annual festival, hosted by the Port Jefferson Business Improvement District, used the theme “Superheroes & Villains” and placed sculptures near One North, Chandler Square, Arden Place and Mill Creek Road to encourage walking, shopping and dining.

Organizers said the festival is timed to bolster business during slow months. James Luciano, president of PJ Lobster House and a member of the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce and BID board, said, “We do this every year in January or February because it’s our slowest time.” Luciano also estimated the event costs about $65,000 and credited institutional support: “Without major sponsors like the hospitals and the university, we can’t do events like this. That support is huge.”

Headlining the live carvings, Rich Daly carved recognizable figures for crowds gathered around central sites, including a block near the Port Jefferson Frigate ice cream shop. Daly told Newsday that he often decides what to carve moments before starting: “There's a lot of little kids, so we were kind of playing off the crowd,” and “Everyone obviously knows Mario. He's iconic.” Sources differ on the carved block’s weight, a photo caption credited to Thomas Hengge described a 300-pound block, while another account said a 900-pound block was uncovered near the Frigate, a detail organizers or the artist can confirm.

Families reported packing the village for hands-on attractions. Cassie Boulukos of Ronkonkoma brought daughter Elizabeth, 7, and son Noel, 2; she said, “The winter is always so hard to get outside.” Elizabeth tried miniature bowling and nearby children sampled ice mini-golf and cornhole on lanes made of ice. Festival features included a 4-foot graffiti ice wall at Main Street and Broadway where attendees carved names or symbols, free tractor rides from Gladysz Farms of Port Jefferson Station, ice-skating demonstrations at The Rinx, a mobile karaoke lounge, song-and-dance performances by Shine Girls and Port Jefferson Rising Stars, and a weather-permitting bonfire with toasted marshmallows near the Port Jefferson Frigate.

Organizers also tied the festival to community health programming during Heart Month, with the Stony Brook Heart Institute and the Greater Port Jefferson Chamber of Commerce participating in activities and planning support from Stony Brook University’s Office of Government and Community Relations. Village officials noted merchants ran promotions and provided free municipal parking for the weekend; Southshorepress has reported an average weekend attendance of about 23,000 visitors historically for the event.

After weeks of extreme cold and an early postponement from its initially previewed dates, the event returned on a milder afternoon and, organizers said, succeeded in drawing people into downtown Port Jefferson to support restaurants, shops and winter programming.