To accommodate the O’Fallon Cup Criterium bicycle race, Fort Zumwalt Park in O’Fallon, Missouri, will be temporarily close to vehicles at dusk on Friday, May 17, through 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, May 18. The race will be held Saturday and the public is invited to attend the event, free. Spectator parking will be available at First Baptist Church of O’Fallon, 8750 Veterans Memorial Parkway (63366).

More information about the race is available online at www.momentumcycles.com.

Students in 4^th through 8^th grade are eligible for a new five-day program, the RSC Coed Basketball Clinic with Coach Kyle Key. The clinic will be held Monday through Friday, June 24-28, at the Renaud Spirit Center (RSC). The recreation complex is located at 2650 Tri Sports Circle, O’Fallon, Missouri 63368. For students entering 4^th through 6^th grade, the clinic will meet from 9 a.m. – noon, and students entering 7^th through 8^th grade will meet from 12:30 – 3:30 p.m.

The clinic is designed for fun, but participants can expect to work hard on strengthening fundamental skills through repetition and drills, and be able to take their game to the next level. Participants will receive a T-shirt and, at the end of the week, a player evaluation. As a bonus, participants age 12 and under will be able to enroll in that week’s Camp J.A.C.K. session at a discount.

The City of O’Fallon was recently recognized as a StormReady community by the National Weather Service, which sponsors the program. To be recognized as StormReady, communities must demonstrate severe weather readiness and meet communication and other guidelines established by the National Weather Service in partnership with federal, state and local emergency management programs.

“We can be proud of O’Fallon’s designation as a StormReady community,” said Police Officer Andy Stowers. “As we saw this month, with spring storms following on the heels of severe winter weather, it’s important to know when major storms are coming and be prepared to deal with them.”

To consolidate recycling efforts, the City of O’Fallon is installing a blue, industrial-sized recycling container at the City’s waste transfer station, 1572 Progress West Lane in O’Fallon (63366) beginning May 1, 2013.

The container will be available to O’Fallon residents at no charge for depositing recyclable materials. It will replace containers that were formerly stationed in two locations, one in the west parking lot at T.R. Hughes Ballpark and the other at Monticello Plaza in the 3700 block of Highway K. The Monticello Plaza and T.R. Hughes locations are being eliminated due to the need for additional parking spots in these areas. Anyone leaving items at these locations after the dumpsters are removed will be in violation of City ordinances.

For an unusual day trip, sign up for “Big House” Views and get a hard-hat tour of the former Missouri State Penitentiary (MSP) in Jefferson City on Thursday, June 6.

Built in 1836 and shuttered in 2004, the “Big House” was hailed in 1893 as one of the most efficient prisons in America for feeding inmates on 11 cents a day, and publically condemned in 1967 as the “bloodiest 47 acres in America.” The tour includes highlights of the penitentiary’s history, cells of infamous inmates, and even a glimpse of the gas chambers.

An exhibit of paintings and drawings by O’Fallon artist Rebecca Bourne is available for viewing, free, through May 24 in O’Fallon’s Cultural Arts Gallery at the Renaud Spirit Center (RSC), 2650 Tri Sports Circle, O’Fallon, Missouri 63368. Bourne’s show includes a variety of art media: oil landscapes, charcoal drawings, pastel portraits, screenprint designs and multimedia.

Bourne graduated from UMSL in 2011 with a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts Degree. She’s won several awards and exhibited throughout the St. Louis metro area, including the Koken Art Factory, Gallery Visio and the Regional Arts Council.

The City of O’Fallon invites community organizations to enter O’Fallon’s Heritage & Freedom Fest Parade, which will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 4, in downtown O’Fallon.

At O’Fallon Founders’ Day, visitors can sing along to cowboy songs, dance to early American tunes, learn how to make an arrow point and fashion a doll from corn husks.

Founders’ Day will be held on Saturday, May 4, from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. in Fort Zumwalt Park, 1000 Jessup Drive, O’Fallon, Missouri 63366. The event includes free admission, parking, live entertainment and kids’ activities.

If you are an O’Fallon resident who is enrolled in the City’s trash and recycling service, you’re invited to use the City’s free, bi-monthly drop-off for many items that are too large to fit into curbside trash containers. The next drop-off date will be Saturday, April 20, from 7 a.m.–3 p.m. Acceptable items can be brought to O’Fallon’s waste transfer station, 1572 Progress West Lane, O’Fallon, MO 63366.

O’Fallon residents must have a current photo ID with their O’Fallon address. Only one load per household will be accepted per day, and only cars, pickup trucks, and small trailers no more than 10 feet long will be allowed. Residents also must unload their own items.

If you’re looking for a relaxing evening of live theater with fast-paced dialogue and humorous characters, get tickets for the O’FallonTheatreWorks’ production of the southern-fried comedy, Faith County, which will be performed on April 19-21 and 26-28. The curtain will go up at 8 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, and at 2 p.m. on Sundays at O’Fallon’s Municipal Centre (City Hall), 100 North Main Street, O’Fallon, Missouri 63366.

Set in a small southern town where the beehive hairdo is still the rage and Saturday nights are reserved for tractor pulls, the story unfolds at the Faith County Fair as a colorful collection of town and country folk swap gossip about one another and compete fiercely for prizes.