APPLETON, WI (WTAQ) – College Avenue in Appleton is preparing for the city’s annual holiday parade on Tuesday night.
Downtown Appleton will light up the night with floats, bands, and other marching units. Communications Coordinator Chad Doran says parade attendance is usually higher than the entire city’s population.
“It’s the biggest nighttime Christmas parade in all of the Midwest. We see 80,000 plus people come down to College Avenue for the event. It really is a spectacle that’s kind of unique. You don’t see this anywhere else,” Doran says, “We have almost 80 different entries in the parade, and the length of it is also one of those things that makes it this grand scale type of parade.”
Doran adds that participants and shops alike will be getting into the festive spirit.
He says there are “business that turn their lights down, lights on the floats and other parade entries, band members decorate themselves or their instruments with lights. It really gives you a sense and a flavor of what the holiday season is, and I think that’s what really attracts people to come down here.”
With the tight coziness of Appleton’s downtown area, the gathering itself can be a sight to behold. And while the festivities don’t officially begin until 6:30 p.m., people will likely try to beat the crowd and reserve their spots. But Doran says you can’t leave chairs out on the curb all day.
“Once we get to the noon hour, people are free to come downtown and start saving their spots. But someone needs to stay with the blankets and chairs and things because we don’t want to see them blowing into the street and blocking traffic or blowing back onto the sidewalk,” Doran explains, “if we allowed people to show up at five in the morning, I’m sure there would be people out there at five in the morning reserving spots.”
Businesses along the parade route are still open during the day so Doran asks spectators to not block the sidewalks for people visiting the storefronts. He also invites everyone to stop at the shops while waiting for the parade to begin.
