Excitement is growing for the first Santa Claus parade of the holiday season, but organizers say a scheduling mishap is creating a logistics nightmare.
The festivities usually fall on the second Saturday of November each year but chairman Shaun Merton said they had to push it back a week so it didn’t conflict with Remembrance Day.
“Date changes make it really awkward because all the entertainment is booked years in advance. And when you have numerous parades on the same day, I think there are 57 parades on Saturday in Toronto, there’s not 57 bands.”
The band committee has been thinking outside of the box to secure entertainment gigs on short notice, and Merton is excited about some of the gems they’ve been able to find.
“I have a drum line that’s up and coming. And guess what, it’s coming. That’ll be kinda cool, I love drum lines, that’s my favourite part.”
The parade hasn’t boasted a drum line in eight years, Merton explained.
“We’re not going to have $5,000 bands this year because we can’t get them. But the different avenue will be quite interesting.”
There are 31 floats registered in the parade this year, despite missing out on some big corporate sponsors.
The parade runs west along Dundas Street, starting at Egerton Street and ending at Ridout Street. It begins on Saturday at 6 p.m.
The Hyde Park Santa Claus parade is being held on November 25th at 10 a.m., and the Argyle BIA’s parade is on December 9th at 11 a.m.
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