This year’s Canada Day Parade won’t be held in downtown Grande Prairie as usual. Because of road closures, it will instead run along 108 Avenue on Sunday, July 1st.
The parade will start from 94 Street by Hillside School at 1 p.m. and move west along 108 Avenue to wrap up by the Composite High on 105 Street. People living in that area of Hillside are asked not to park on the street, as well as along 108 Avenue.
Typically, barricades get put up half an hour before the parade starts and are taken down as soon as possible after. Drivers can still head north and south on 84, 92, 108 and 116 Streets, and west and east on 68, 84, 116 and 132 Avenues.
The City of Grande Prairie again has two days of festivities planned to celebrate the nation’s birthday. From 8 p.m. to midnight on June 30, Muskoseepi Park will be home to two stages of entertainment of local performers, inflatables, food and community vendors.
Headlining both days is the variety act of Bob and Jane Cates, who recently won Best Variety Act at the 2018 Canadian Comedy Awards. They will perform at 9 p.m. Saturday night and at 3 and 5 p.m. Sunday.
Saturday night will finish with a fireworks display over the Bear Creek reservoir, although it may be cancelled if winds are stronger than 40 kilometres an hour or if there is a lightning storm.
After the parade on Canada Day, the party will move back to Muskoseepi Park. Once again there will be live entertainment, food vendors, and bouncing castles, as well as face painting and other children’s activities until 6 p.m.
The Grande Prairie Regional Hospital Foundation will be putting on its annual hospital bed races from 2 to 4 p.m. The Grande Prairie Museum will also be hosting a free family carnival complete with games, face-painting, and entertainment.
No parking will be available at Muskoseepi Park for any events. Some public parking will be available in the downtown core, and free Park N’ Ride shuttle services will be offering from the Eastlink Centre to the parade and Muskoseepi Park, as well as a route that passes by Grande Prairie Regional College, Centre 2000, and the Leisure Centre on the way to Muskoseepi Park.
