Mississippi-born Backyard Burgers across from University Medical Center on State Street (and on UMMC land) will reopen this weekend and you might notice some big changes. Keeping Fondren fed since 1998, the restaurant has been completely remodeled and now includes a Smoothie King and Hazel Coffee Shop.

Renovations began at the end of 2012 and will be completed with a grand reopening on Sunday that includes live music on the front porch.

Everyone’s an artist, at least this weekend in Midtown. Figment returns for a third year to Jackson and its second year in the Millsaps Arts District just south of Fondren. In 2012, Midtown hosted this small, family-friendly, interactive festival building on the momentum of 2011′s inaugural event at the Coca-Cola plant on Highway 80. Figment began in July 2007 on Governors Island in New York Harbor with over 2,600 participants.

After five years of running through Fondren, Bobby Moorehead says it’s still a beautiful race. He’s director for this weekend’s 5th annual Cardinal Men’s Club Flight to the Finish 5k at St. Richard Catholic School. Organized by a group of parents who are runners, Flight raises funds for scholarship programs for the 60 year old school.

Founded in 2008, Flight to the Finish helps deserving children who otherwise could not afford to attend St. Richard. “The school gets a lot of kids from a lot of different places,” Moorehead explains.