St. Patrick’s Day: Tampa to dye river green for annual celebration

Tampa gears up for busy St. Patrick's Day weekend

Kylie Jones reports

TAMPA, Fla. - The Hillsborough River will go green on March 16 as the city’s River O’Green Festival returns to Curtis Hixon Park.

The free event kicks off at the St. Patrick’s Day holiday and will feature live music, kid’s activities, food trucks and beer. It will all take place alongside a bright green Hillsborough River.

"Last year we had about 20,000 people who came through," Rachel Radewec, with the Tampa Downtown Partnership said. "We're expecting the same size crowd this year, because we are the day before St. Patrick's Day."

The city dyed a portion of the river green on Friday as a test run ahead of the big festival.

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According to the city, the green coloring is safe for the environment, humans, and animals.

Tampa dyes river green: Time lapse

Watch the city of Tampa dye a portion of the Hillsborough River green in a one-minute time-lapse ahead of St. Patrick’s Day.

Officials say it is non-toxic, biodegradable, meets all EPA standards, and is certified to comply with National Sanitation Foundation Standard 60 for use in and around drinking water.

This is the same dye often used in eye surgeries, food, and water systems to trace the flow of drinking water.

River O’Green event schedule:

Saturday, March 16, 2024

11:15 a.m. – 12:45 p.m. - Paddy O’Furniture Performance (Main Stage)
11:30 a.m. - TBD (Terrace Stage)
1:00 p.m. - Finnegan Irish Dance Academy Performance (Terrace Stage)
1:15 – 2:45 p.m. - TBD (Main Stage)
2:30 p.m. - TBD (Terrace Stage)
3:00 p.m.- Finnegan Irish Dance Academy Performance (Terrace Stage)
3:30 p.m. - Pet Costume Contest Sponsored by Barrymore Hotel (Terrace Stage)
4 – 5 p.m. - Phoenix Five Performance (Main Stage)

The city of Tampa dyed a portion of the Hillsborough River green on Friday as a test run for St. Patrick's Day weekend.

The Rough Rider’s St. Patrick’s Parade will be held in downtown Tampa for the first time this year.

"This could be a premier event, like all the other big St. Patrick's Day events across the country, and we really feel that can happen," Rick Ceglio with the Rough Riders said. "And that’s why the Rough Riders decided to say, ‘Look, you know what? We’ve got a river green. We got a parade. Let's put them together and make this thing a big event, so people will come from all over the place’."

The parade begins at 5 p.m. at Joe Chillura Square and move down East Madison Street before turning right on East Ashley Drive and then taking another right onto Polk Street.

The roads will begin closing at 1 p.m. on Saturday and will remain closed until after the parade.

Rough Rider's St. Patrick's Parade route. Image is courtesy of the city of Tampa.

The city encourages people to plan transportation ahead of time.

"If you're coming from the north, parking in the Poe Parking Garage, and if you're coming from the south, Fort Brooke Parking Garage," Radewec said. "You could park in Ybor City and take the streetcar. Or you could bike, walk, scoot, or you could take our new service, Dash."

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