CHICAGO — The famed South Side Irish Parade will return in March after two years off because of the COVID-19 pandemic, organizers said.
This year’s South Side Irish Parade will be March 13 along Western Avenue in Beverly and Morgan Park, spokesperson Ellyn Caruso confirmed. It attracts as many as 150,000 people to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day and the city’s large Irish American population.
“We’re excited,” Caruso said.
No other details were immediately available.
Parade plans could change if the city restricts permits because of a surge in COVID-19 cases. The city canceled both the Downtown and South Side Irish parades and tradition of dyeing the Chicago River in 2020 and 2021 because of health concerns of gathering in larger crowds. Mayor Lori Lightfoot surprised the city in 2021 and the river dyed green last-minute just before St. Patrick’s Day.
The South Side Irish parade is the largest neighborhood-based St. Patrick’s Day Parade outside of Dublin. It was founded in 1979 and has returned every year except 2009-2011, when rowdy, drunken behavior was blamed for its cancellation, and during the two years of the pandemic.
