BOSTON (WHDH) - What’s old is new again at Boston’s Saint Patrick’s Day Parade as the parade returns to its full route this year for the first time since before the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bars and restaurants are preparing for a busy weekend. City officials are also gearing up, working to keep everyone safe on parade day as Saint Patrick’s Day festivities look to simultaneously honor Evacuation Day.
The parade, back on its traditional longer route, will pass many historic sites in South Boston where Revolutionary War soldiers forced the British to retreat in 1776.
“This is a beloved tradition in the city and one that is very much tied to the history of our immigrant communities and the history of particular Revolutionary War sites and the development of this country,” Boston Mayor Michelle Wu said on Monday.
Wu joined Police Commissioner Michael Cox to encourage the hundreds of thousands expected to descend upon South Boston on Sunday to be safe.
Cox said Saint Patrick’s Day festivities have become more family friendly over time.
“We want to make sure it stays that way,” he continued.
Cox said Boston police are partnering with transit and state police as well as federal authorities to make sure the entire parade route is covered, especially after a hate group was spotted along the parade route last year.
“It doesn’t matter if it’s a hate group or anyone who wants to come into the city who wants to harm or interrupt our daily lives,” Cox said. “They are on our radar and we will address it appropriately.”
Cox said bars will be closing along the parade route at 4 p.m. on Sunday to give the city time to clean up after the parade finishes.
Those who are drinking, Cox continued, should take steps to protect themselves against drink spiking.
“We will prosecute anybody that we find and capture who has done this, certainly,” he said. “But in the meantime, we just want people to stay safe and be cognizant of their drinks.”
Officials are still urging parade-goers to take public transit Sunday, even with recent problems plaguing the T. Wu said city officials have been including MBTA personnel in preparations to make sure everyone is on the same page.
“They have assured us that this is on their radar as a very big, important, large-scale event and so they know that we need to have special care here,” Wu said.
The parade is scheduled to step off from the Broadway T stop at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
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