Kamas event center to host Gateway to Summer market and art contest

Kamas is putting its own stamp on early summer with a two-day market and art contest that organizers say will be the biggest Gateway to Summer yet. Kamas Action’s June 12 and 13 event at the Kamas City Event Center is designed to draw families, artists, vendors and neighbors to the east side of Summit County for a mix of shopping, music and civic gathering.

The event will include live music from Shrink the Giant and others, food trucks, kids’ activities, a bounce house, the Kamas Valley Market, a sports-themed historical talk and the Homegrown Arts & Crafts Roundup, a contest for local artists and makers. KPCW’s Local News Hour said the art contest includes a cash prize, adding a direct incentive for area artists to show work and compete for attention.

The gathering will take place at the Kamas City Event Center, 50 East 400 South in Kamas, a venue the city began accepting reservations for in November 2024. City listings set rental fees at $250 for Kamas residents, $500 for Kamas Valley residents, $1,000 for Summit County residents and $1,500 for non-residents, a sign the building has quickly become a civic asset as well as an event space.

Kamas Action describes itself as a volunteer group in Kamas Valley and says it runs a monthly showcase for the best the valley, and beyond, has to offer. Its regular market schedule is the second Saturday of the month, January and July excepted, from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the event center. Gateway to Summer fits that broader calendar, giving the group a larger stage at the start of the season.

The event also reflects how Kamas is trying to grow its own summer identity instead of depending on Park City for the county’s cultural center of gravity. KPCW reported in 2024 that Gateway to Summer had previously been held under the flagpole at Kamas City Hall before moving to the event center, where booths could spread out indoors and outdoors. Vendor participation rose from about a dozen to two dozen that year, and organizers say this year’s setup is even larger.

That expansion matters locally. Artists gain a venue and a cash prize, food vendors and crafters gain customers, and families gain a close-to-home event that mixes entertainment with community history. Kamas Valley History Group used Gateway to Summer for its first open house in 2024, a reminder that the market is becoming more than a sales day. It is helping define a summer season for South Summit that looks increasingly built from within.