Partygoers crowd Main Street for the 2023 New Year’s celebration in Auburn. The 2024 edition will be held from 3-9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31. Andree Kehn/Sun Journal file

AUBURN — Food, drinks, fireworks and ’90s rock. What more could you want to ring in the new year?

City staff and volunteers are hard at work to deliver the 6th annual New Year’s Auburn and have lined up some new and returning features. But, the central idea behind the city’s signature event remains the same: an all-ages celebration in the heart of the downtown.

New Year’s Auburn will take place from 3-9 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 31, along Main Street and Festival Plaza, where a handful of bands, breweries and food vendors will entertain the crowd before a traditional fireworks display over the falls.

Jennifer Boenig, Auburn’s downtown coordinator, said preparations are going well with only three weeks until New Year’s Eve, but that the team works on the event all year long.

“It does get a little easier each year,” she said Monday. “We always start with the same core elements: live music, food trucks and breweries; but I do challenge the team to continue finding ways to grow the event,” she said.

Boenig believes Auburn’s event is “one of the few, if not the last,” city-organized New Year’s celebrations in Maine that is free to attend.

She said the crowd favorite ’90s cover band Hello Newman is returning this year, as well as the LA Harley Band kicking things off at 3 p.m. Then, closing out the night is Fire in the Hole.

The event will feature several breweries serving craft beer and cocktails under the tents in Festival Plaza: Craft Brew Underground, Geary Brewing, Gritty McDuff’s, Lost Valley Brewing, Nonesuch River Brewing, Olive Pit Brewing, and Side by Each Brewing.

Food and other hot beverages will be offered from Burnt Ends Barbecue, Gonna Love It, L.A. Taco, Lucky Cat Coffee, Nutty Netties, and Rollin’ in the Dough. Boenig said all ages are welcome, but attendees must be 21 or over to purchase alcoholic beverages.

Around 8:30 or 8:45 p.m., the fireworks show will begin. The city estimated that some 5,000 people attended last year’s show, which featured a drone light show.

Liz Allen, director of communications and community engagement, said Monday that the city is “so proud to bring this fun, safe event to our community.”

“It’s time to put 2024 behind us and look toward a great, new year filled with possibilities,” she said. “What better way to do that than to join thousands of your friends and neighbors in the heart of downtown Auburn.”

Boenig said the event team comes from various city departments, and they lean heavily on the Public Works crew and the Police Department to make sure the events run smoothly. She said area businesses, such as partner Emerson Toyota, also support Auburn’s signature events through event partnerships, and their staff work together with the city’s team.