By Alyssa Schnugg
News editor
alyssa.schnugg@hottytoddy.com
For 40 years, the annual Christmas Parade has started and ended at the Mid-Town Shopping Center.
This year, however, the parade will have a new route.
Mayor Robyn Tannehill said Tuesday that due to the growth of the parade and the addition of several businesses in the shopping center that stay open past 5 p.m., the city had to change the starting and ending locations for the parade this year.
“We are very grateful to Mid-Town Shopping Center for letting us use their parking lot for 40 years,” Tannehill said during the Oxford Board of Aldermen meeting. “It has become inconvenient for the businesses there.”
Emergency Management Coordinator Jimmy Allgood said the parade has grown over the years and that it had actually outgrown the parking lot.
“It’s too small now,” Allgood said.
This year’s parade will be held on Dec. 3.
The parade participants will gather on University Avenue between Old Taylor Road and 5th Street, which will be closed to traffic. The parade will continue down University Avenue to South Lamar Boulevard and travel around the east side of the Square, down North Lamar Boulevard to Price Street where it will officially end; however, floats will continue to the Oxford Activity Center parking lot to be dismantled and where participants can be picked up.
The entire length of the parade route is 1.7 miles. The old route was 1.87 miles, according to Allgood.
“It’s very similar to the old route but in reverse,” Allgood said.
