This isn’t a necessary step; sometimes “togetherness” is the best theme of all. But if you want to liven up the party, you may want to include a theme. You could do a luau theme with Hawaiian-style decorations like tiki torches; a “summer” theme with beach balls, flip-flops, sand and sunglasses; or a patriotic theme (it doesn’t have to be the Fourth of July to do this theme; it’s appropriate all summer, and you may even be able to purchase patriotic decorations at a discount price if you wait until after the Fourth).
If you don’t want to do an all-out theme, just a few simple candles can make a big difference in the ambiance. Even better: make them citronella candles – they do double duty by keeping the bugs at bay.
Plan the menu.
Unless you want to be stuck with a humongous food bill and a ton of responsibility, it’s best to organize the block party dinner pot-luck style. There’s nothing wrong with asking your neighbors to bring side dishes and beverages to share, and it ensures that you’ll have a variety of dishes available. (If your neighborhood is ethnically and culturally diverse, it might be fun to ask each family to bring a dish specific to their heritage. You might be surprised at the types of cuisine you’ll end up liking!) Make sure you have a big enough table! To make things easier, you can assign even-numbered houses to bring side dishes and/or salads, and odd-numbered houses to bring dessert.
You provide the meat, because it’s hard to separate which meat belongs to whom while you’re cooking; not only that, but it wouldn’t be fair for some people to dine on thick porterhouse steaks while others are eating hot dogs. Hamburgers and hot dogs are easy to grill and don’t require tons of preparation. You may even want to buy a couple packages of veggie burgers or hot dogs, in consideration of vegetarian families and the more calorie-conscious. Meat can be expensive, so consider collecting money beforehand – or setting up a “donations” can at the party and asking everyone to throw in a couple of bucks if they can.
You’ll also want to provide the ice, and possibly some drinks (some people will bring their own), so make sure you have plenty – and plenty of coolers to stock it all in. A good estimate is about a pound of ice per person in attendance. It’s completely appropriate to ask your neighbors to bring their own cups, plates, utensils, and napkins, but make sure you have a few extra packages of such items on hand for those that forget.