Fredericksburg City Council has voted to move the Fredericksburg Chamber of Commerce Light the Night Christmas Parade.
The decision was made at the council’s 6 p.m. regular meeting Monday, held in person in the H-E-B Room of the Hill Country University Center, 2818 U.S. 290 East. This was the council’s first in-person meeting since March 23, when the COVID-19 pandemic was just beginning.
Penny McBride, president and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce, said moving the parade to the park provides more space and a one-way entrance, which will help them control crowd density.
“Given everything that’s going on this year, we knew sometime back that the bleacher seating and some of the AfterGlow activities we normally have at the parade would not be a workable plan,” McBride said. “Moving the parade route to Lady Bird Johnson Municipal Park, we see strengths in that, as we have more ground to work with.”
The chamber will mark off viewing stations within the park, which can be reserved for free in advance of the parade.
“For example, if Mayor Gary Neffendorf was a guest at the parade, he would reserve a viewing station, and his vehicle and whoever else in that vehicle would view the parade within that station,” McBride said.
She plans to talk with organizations like the Gillespie County Fair and Festivals Association for extra space and entry areas. Also, she is looking to move the parade start back to 7 or 7:15 p.m. to allow commuter traffic between Fredericksburg and Kerrville to pass through prior to the road closure.
Parade guests would have to be in the park before the start of the parade. Entries would be run on a circular path through the park, then back to the staging area.
McBride realizes they won’t be able to accommodate for as many visitors, as usual, so they plan to hire a video company to broadcast the event.
“That would give people who may not be comfortable coming to the parade a viewing option for a virtual experience,” McBride said.
Councilmember Charlie Kiehne asked if locals would have a first chance of getting reservations before tourists.
“By using an online platform, it’s difficult for me to understand who is making that reservation and what their locality might be,” McBride said. “We certainly want our local residents to enjoy the parade as they always have, but we also know that the parade is a tourism economic engine as well.”
According to previous research, McBride said a large portion of parade attendees are from out of town. She hopes this parade could help local businesses have a successful holiday shopping season.
This option was approved unanimously by the council.
Zooma Run
Additionally, the council voted 4-1 to approve the Zooma Run, a racing event with a half marathon, a 10K and a 5K on Nov. 7.
When the race began in 2019, it brought 1,000 participants.
Organizers plan to enforce mask wearing before and after the event, cancel the post-race celebrations and mail packets and awards to participants. Ahead of the starts, runners would wait on Marktplatz.
Councilman Tom Musselman opposed the event, as he was concerned about the difficulty of social distancing this event, saying it becomes a “logistical problem.”
Neffendorf suggested Event Organizer Sarah Ratzlaff limit the amount of runners to around 300.
“The lower we go in numbers, financially it would begin to be a loss very quickly,” Ratzlaff said.
With the council approval comes the limitation of staggering starts, meaning each race would begin with separate starts of only 10 runners every few minutes. Approval of this race will only go into effect if the event’s safety guidelines are approved by Special Events Coordinator Jennifer Krupa.
Other business
The council also:
• Approved a Conditional Use Permit for an addition and expansion to the Fredericksburg Veterinary Center, 1203 N. Llano Street;
• Awarded a $167,015 construction contract to All American Pump Solutions for the Green Meadows Lift Station Rehab Project;
• Advised the owner of the 319 E. Main Street to appeal his case for allowing more outdoor dining at his property to the Board of Adjustments; and
• Voted to continue with in-person city council meetings at the Hill Country University Center with a remote option for October.