Westmount prepares for St. Patrick’s Day Parade

The City of Westmount will once again participate with the award-winning ‘Then and Now’ float, as well as a contingent from Public Security.

Mayor Peter Trent and Councillor Nicole Forbes, Commissioner of Cultural and Community Services, along with other members of council will be waving and smiling from the float as it makes its way east along Ste. Catherine Street from Fort Street to Phillips Square.

Preparations are currently underway, as employees from Westmount Public Works and volunteers are building the float that will sit on a flatbed donated by Canbec Trucking. The work started with mounting panels on the flatbed. This Saturday, volunteer Westmounters 10 years and older are invited to decorate the float at the Public Works Yards on Bethune Street from 10 a.m. until about noon. Volunteers are also needed to dismantle the float after the parade.

There is always limited space on the float for riders, so Westmount residents who would like to ride in the parade must have a pass. They can be picked up at the Community Events office at Victoria Hall, on a first come, first served basis. Westmounters are also invited to walk the parade route to provide security by the wheels, to raise and lower the banners as the float goes around corners, to carry group banners and to distribute candies to the crowd.

Since the March weather is fickle it is recommended that warm clothing, preferably green, be worn. Hot chocolate and other refreshments will be available during the three hour walk.

On Sunday morning, the Westmount float will be lined up on René Lévesque Boulevard between de la Montagne and Crescent. Traffic will be open eastbound for drop off directly at the float. A bus will leave from Victoria Hall, 4626 Sherbrooke St. W. at 11:30 a.m. sharp and will return after the parade.

The Montreal St. Patrick’s Day parade is a much anticipated mega event that hosts hundreds of floats and entries from Canadian and American municipalities. It is the oldest consecutively run St. Patrick’s Day Parade in North America. The parade has been organized by the United Irish Societies of Montreal since 1928. Each year in March, the citizens of Montreal and municipalities from as far away as the United States are invited to enjoy the celebration of St. Patrick, the Irish community and the welcoming of spring.

A giant replica of St. Patrick leads the parade followed by the Grand Marshal who leads the three hour presentation of floats, bands, community and cultural groups

For more information, phone the community events office at 514-989-5265.