The alteration to this year’s Homecoming Parade route might have people vacating Court Street momentarily, if only so revelers can catch a glimpse of participants peddling the portion of the street not adjacent to the bars.
Unlike years past, the parade won’t be shuffling past the bar lineup. Instead, it will commence on Factory Street at 10 a.m., move up Union Street and take a right on Court Street to head toward Baker University Center for float judging.
Even with the possibility of bargoers relinquishing their seats to view the parade, many bar owners said they aren’t worried about a lack of imbibing alumni and students.
Ryan Seeberg, owner of Lucky’s Sports Tavern, 11 N. Court St., said people begin shuffling in for drinks as soon as the bar opens at 5:30 a.m.
“When you first open, you have the people who haven’t gone to bed yet,” Seeberg said. “They are starting their day; they fill up, and they start rotating at game time.”
He added that other factors will influence the bar crowd more than the parade.
“I think having a winning football program is going to affect the number of people going to be in town more than the parade,” he said.
Amanda Roden, a student trustee and member of the Homecoming Steering Committee, said a main reason for the change was to allow more room for larger floats and to maintain a safe atmosphere.
“We had an issue with it not being family friendly because of people coming out of the bars intoxicated and not reflecting the spirit of Ohio University,” she said.
Those at Casa Nueva don’t foresee the reroute affecting their business in any way, said Zebulon Thobaben, a partial owner of the restaurant and bar, located at 6 W. State St.
“Usually during the parade, everyone leaves the bar anyway to watch the parade,” Thobaben said.
Ed Cranford, one of the owners of The Pub, 39 N. Court St., said he expects OU alumni to continue to flock to their favorite bars this weekend, despite the altered parade route.
“It’s usually alumni people who have been here for years,” Cranford said. “Even though they graduated years ago, they are still alumni, and that won’t change regardless of where the parade is at.”
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