NEW YORK (WCBS 880) – The annual Village Halloween Parade got the green light to take place this year after it was canceled in 2020 because of the pandemic—but there’s a chance it still won’t happen amid funding issues.
Organizers said Thursday that they’d received the necessary permits to put on an in-person parade with spectators, declaring that the beloved event “is making a comeback.”
But organizers warned the parade could still be scrapped because they don’t have the necessary funding yet. They need to raise $150,000 and have set up a fundraiser.
“The parade is going to need a lot of help from the community to raise funds for the event,” they said.
Jeanne Fleming, the artistic/producing director of the parade, said organizers’ deadline to meet the budget to produce the event is Oct. 5.
“The parade has always been a celebration of all New Yorkers, and now it is their donation that will keep the streets open, free, and creative for all this Halloween,” she said.
The 47th annual Halloween parade was canceled last year because of concerns about the coronavirus.
On a normal year, the parade attracts hordes of revelers to Greenwich Village as Halloween-themed floats and thousands of costumed participants stream up Sixth Avenue from Spring Street to 16th Street.
Organizers said the parade’s 2021 theme will be “Let’s Play” and is dedicated to “the children of New York who didn’t get a proper Halloween in 2020 and to the child in all of us.”
Comedian and singer Randy Rainbow will be the parade’s grand marshal and will be on a float featuring the NYC Gay Men’s Chorus.
Hip-hop group Naughty by Nature will also be in the parade, organizers said. They’ll perform hits from their self-titled debut album as they celebrate 30 years since its release.
Organizers said the parade will follow all CDC guidelines related to COVID-19. And they asked spectators and participants to wear masks and “get creative making them.”
Thursday's announcement came a day after organizers of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade said that event would return with spectators this year.
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