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Melbourne Light Parade will return after 1-year hiatus, but funding outlook remains murky

Rick Neale
Florida Today

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Last December, the COVID-19 pandemic and a funding shortfall forced cancellation of the Melbourne Light Parade, which historically attracts an estimated 25,000 to 30,000 spectators.

The small volunteer-run nonprofit that organizes the popular nighttime Yuletide procession continues to struggle with fundraising. And as of Monday, only 15 floats were registered to participate, said Karen Harshaw, parade president. 

But organizers are trying to recruit more participants, and the 29th annual Melbourne Light Parade will return at 6 p.m. Dec. 11. The holiday procession will start at the old Land Yacht Port-O-Call property on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, near Hilton Melbourne Rialto Place.

The parade will head south before turning west on Hibiscus Boulevard. The 2-mile route ends at the intersection of Hibiscus Boulevard and Gateway Drive, near The Oaks Shopping Center.

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"I just wish everyone would realize that it's a nonprofit's — and not the city's — parade. I just wish people would understand that," Harshaw said.

According to a draft special-event permit agreement, Melbourne City Hall may charge parade organizers $13,622 for various services. Costs include $4,694 for police patrols, $3,591 for parks and recreation, $2,932 for traffic engineering and $2,310 for electronic message boards.

Melbourne Light Parade Inc. seeks floats and participants for the Dec. 11 event. To register, visit  melbournelightparade.org or email melbournelightparade@yahoo.com.

"There is still time to enter into the parade ... A True Melbourne Family Tradition ... Make wonderful memories with family and friends," said a Nov. 18 post on the parade's Facebook page.

Organizers have waived late fees to encourage more sign-ups, and donations and sponsors are also sought. 

Parade spectators are asked to bring new unwrapped toys, nonperishable food items, dog food and cat food to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank of Central Florida and Space Coast Kibble Kitchen.

Donations can be handed to a volunteer walking with the lead float in the parade.

In 2017, the Melbourne City Council decided to stop using taxpayer dollars to help fund four parades: Melbourne Light Parade ($7,000), Fourth of July ($2,500), Memorial Day ($2,000) and Veterans Day ($2,000). Council members later voted to fund the 2018 Melbourne Light Parade.

During last week's City Council meeting, Council Member Tim Thomas encouraged his fellow council members to reach out and try to drum up sponsorships and support for the upcoming parade.

Council members may revisit parade funding sometime early next year. Council Member Debbie Thomas said it appears Melbourne Light Parade funding is a consistent issue.

“We’re really getting down to the wire now,” Debbie Thomas said.

“We’re getting down to the wire," Tim Thomas replied.  And this is a problem every year."

A colorful lighted dragon float rolls down the road during the 2013 Melbourne Light Parade.

City Manager Shannon Lewis said the city could put on a light parade — "but it is an enormous amount of work.”

“You think about what we put into the Fourth of July event, as it relates to city services and expense and just the planning process. We’ve not had that role in the light parade,” Lewis said.

“I’m not sure we have the capacity at the moment to do that,” she said.

Rick Neale is the South Brevard Watchdog Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY (for more of his stories, click here.) Contact Neale at 321-242-3638 or rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter: @RickNeale1

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