Popular N.J. St. Patrick’s Day Parade Might Make A Comeback
St. Patrick’s Day is a while away – 127 days to be exact. But New Jerseyans might have something extra to look forward to for St. Pat’s 2023. That’s the possible return of the jubilant parade in Hoboken after an 11-year hiatus. The Hudson County city banned the St. Patrick’s Day Parade from coming back in 2012 after celebrating it for 26 years prior. In 2011, 34 arrests were made as week as 296 citations were issued for violations such as urinating in public and carrying open containers of alcohol, per NJ Advance Media.
“The city of Hoboken’s inability to protect our spectators, bands, and participants led us to this heartbreaking decision,” the parade committee said in a statement to NBC at the time. “The idea of marching in a parade, in the dark, on a weeknight, is as insulting as it is unreasonable.”
Now, a group of local business leaders is trying to resurrect the parade into a more family-friendly affair. Since the 2011 incident, residents participated in the “LepreCon” bar crawl to fill the void. Of course, many displayed public drunkenness at that event. This is the city’s attempt to drive the popular annual pub crawl away from the city. In order for a 2023 St. Patrick’s Day Parade to occur, bars and restaurants in Hoboken must not participate in any “LepreCon” bar crawl activities.
“Pending resident feedback, I think a family-friendly themed parade as well as a way to rid our city of ‘Con’ events is a much better path to a positive day in the city of Hoboken on the first Saturday in March,” said Director of Public Safety Ken Ferrante, per NJ Adance Media.
The Hoboken Business Alliance has sent a survey to residents asking the following questions in relation to reviving the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and if there is interest if it were to be a family-friendly event. Some of the questions asked were:
- Do you live in Hoboken?
- Did you live in Hoboken in 2011 or before, when the Hoboken St. Patrick’s Day took place in Hoboken?
- If the Hoboken Business Alliance were to reintroduce the Hoboken St. Patrick’s Day parade, at no additional cost to taxpayers, on the first Saturday of March, would you be in favor?
- If the parade were to return, with the stipulation that no bars or restaurants were participating in the “Leprecon” bar crawl that has in recent years taken place on the first Saturday in March, and that it would be a family-friendly parade, would you be in favor?
- Do you typically leave Hoboken on the first Saturday of March?
- If the Hoboken Business Alliance were to introduce a family-friendly parade, and without bars participating in the “Leprecon” bar crawl, would you be more likely to patronize businesses in town on the first Saturday of March?
The survey also left a spot for residents to express any additional comments or concerns as well as offer up their services to help out in the making of the St. Patrick’s Day Parade if they so choose.
The poll will be accepting answers until November, and then the results will be presented to Mayor Ravi Bhalla and the Hoboken City Council.
New Jersey's Best Holiday-Themed Bars & Restaurants
