Nola Sizemore

Staff Writer

Bringing in the Christmas Holiday, the annual Tri-City Christmas Parade will be held Dec. 7 beginning at 5:30 p.m. The parade will begin lining up at 4:30 p.m. on U.S. 119 in the southbound lane shoulder from Russell Drive to West Main Street, traveling into the downtown area of Cumberland.

“The Cumberland Police Department wishes to remind all motorists to plan an alternate route for traveling through downtown Cumberland on Friday between the hours of 4:30 p.m. and 6 p.m.,” said Cumberland Police Sgt. Silas Whitehead. “Once the parade begins, East Main Street will be closed to all traffic from U.S. 119 north and southbound lanes, Russell Drive and all other connecting streets, which include Main Street from Kingdom Come Drive, Cumberland Avenue and KY 160.”

Also West Main Street to U.S. 119, where the parade will start, will be closed, said Whitehead.

Only emergency vehicles will be permitted to travel the closed roadways during the parade.

“Once the parade begins, all traffic on U.S. 119 southbound will be stopped until the parade is safely onto West Main Street,” he said. “All traffic northbound on U.S. 119 will not be affected by the parade.”

Whitehead said the police department is asking for everyone’s cooperation during the event.

“As a reminder, it will be dark due to the parade starting later in the evening, so everyone needs to exercise extreme caution,” said Whitehead. “If you have a child or someone riding in the parade, make plans to pick them up at the Dollar Store where the parade ends. We encourage the public to park in the public parking areas of the city and watch the parade from the sidewalks or parking spaces facing the parade routes. Officers will be patrolling the parade route to ensure the safety of all those in the parade and citizens watching the parade.”

For more information on traffic, you may contact the Cumberland Police Department at 606-589-2314 or by email at cumberlandpd959@yahoo.com. For parade information, you may contact Cumberland City Hall at 606-589-2106.

Reach Nola Sizemore at 606-573-4510 or at nsizemore@heartlandpublications.com