The towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro recently announced plans for the annual holiday parade, including this year’s theme and a change for how entrants can move through the route.

Chapel Hill’s Community Arts & Culture department shared that the procession will begin at 10 a.m. on Saturday, December 9. The parade route will run from the 140 West Plaza in downtown Chapel Hill, continuing as Franklin Street turns into Carrboro’s Main Street before finishing at Carrboro Town Hall at 301 West Main Street.

After taking over the parade organization in 2021, the Community Arts & Culture team decides a theme for entrants to follow each year. For 2023, the event will showcase groups “walkin’ in a winter wonderland” — which the town says is an opportunity to feature alternative modes of transportation. Walking, biking, rollerblading and more are recommended for participants to demonstrate.

One common method in parades, however, is being banned this time. The parade’s planning team is not allowing motor vehicles in the 2023 Community Holiday Parade, citing it as a safety measure for both those walking the parade route and those watching from the sidewalks. The towns are not the only Triangle-area government to recently make the change: the City of Raleigh is no longer allowing motor vehicles in its parades after an 11 year-old died from being struck by a vehicle towing a float in the 2022 Raleigh Christmas Parade.

The Chapel Hill organizers said beyond the safety components, it also allows the towns to highlight their year-long commitments to environmental sustainability.

“We’re lucky to have such a diverse array of community groups and organizations here in Chapel Hill and Carrboro,” said Meeghan Rosen, the Community Arts & Culture department’s interim director. “They’re what make the Holiday Parade such a fun, festive, and uniquely local event. We’re looking forward to this year’s parade!”

Like in 2022, groups and people interested in participating in the holiday parade are requested to register.

The towns said that registration period is open through Sunday, November 12 for “organizations with diverse cultural and faith traditions” and parade units, who are “encouraged to decorate with a winter theme.” The form to apply, and more information, can be found by going to the Chapel Hill Community Arts & Culture website.

 

Photo via the Town of Chapel Hill.

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