The first ever Binghamton Blowout Block Party will hit the Downtown area tonight, bringing with it a wide variety of performances, shows and music.

Scheduled for 4 to 9 p.m., festivities will include more than 70 informational tables, musical and street performances, food vendors, trolley tours, planetarium shows, movies, yoga demonstrations, raffles and more.

The event, nicknamed B3P, is sponsored by Catalysts for Intellectual Capital 2020 (CIC2020) with the help of Binghamton community leaders.

According to Adam Amit, director of CIC2020, the Block Party concept was created with the hopes of providing an atmosphere where students could see all of the positive aspects of the city of Binghamton in a condensed format.

The celebration will take place on Court Street. The area, from State Street to Front Street, will be closed off for the occasion.

The Block Party itself was brought into motion through the Leadership Institute class that runs every year during the spring semester, Amit said.

Amit, along with other organizers, are hoping that the project will provide a way for students to learn about the Greater Binghamton area, and will show that it has a lot to offer graduates and young families, including affordable housing options for their future.

“[The] project for the class was to come up with a way to get students Downtown to explore and learn about the area,” Amit said.

Creators also hope to establish a positive first impression among freshmen by allowing them to see the intellectually stimulating, friendly and welcoming community of Binghamton, according to the CIC2020 Web site.

Organizational efforts for B3P began in June of 2008.

CIC2020 brought together representatives from the city of Binghamton and the University to involve both the local community and BU in the event.

Andrew Block, director of Community Relations for the city of Binghamton, also contributed to the event.

“[CIC] 2020 and the city of Binghamton, especially the business districts, have been working very close to promote exposure, understanding and better life in general for students,” Block said.

According to Block, the city’s administration is looking forward to the success of the event.

Block said he is excited about making Binghamton University a “better asset to the city of Binghamton itself.”

CIC2020 was created in response to a challenge Diane Crews, Ph.D., professor in the human development department at Binghamton University, presented to her students as part of her Leadership and Organizational Change course in January of 2004, according to the CIC2020 Web site.

According to Amit, the group itself is a student-run organization whose mission is to retain 20 percent of graduating students in Binghamton by the year 2020.

Since 2004, CIC2020 has worked with numerous University and community leaders in order to carry out their mission.

For more information regarding the event, visit CIC2020’s Web site at cic2020.org.