There’s a change in this year’s holiday light parade in Ammon. Find out why

AMMON — An annual holiday light event in Ammon will have a major change this year, but organizers promise it will still be festive and a lot of fun for the community. 

The Holiday Lightapalooza will be on Saturday, Dec. 7, at 6 p.m. at McCowin Park in Ammon. There will be food, vendors, music and lights. Santa arrives at 6:30 p.m. It’s free to attend. 

“We will have free hot chocolate and cookies, courtesy of Kneaders, while they last. They usually go pretty quick,” said Randal Miller, Ammon recreation director. 

The event, which is in its eighth year, is known as a light parade. This year’s theme will be a little different, however. The floats will stay in place. 

“The big change is that there is no parade route. The floats are not going to be traveling. They are all going to be stationary over at the park,” Miller said. “You can see the floats and vote on your favorite.”

There will be prize money for the best floats, ranging from $300 to $1,000. Floats must have a minimum of 1,500 lights. If you are interested in entering a float, you have until Dec. 2 to register. Click here to register. If you have any questions, email Miller at rmiller@cityofammon.us. 

The reason behind the stationary floats is safety. 

“We met with the streets department and the sheriff’s office. We have had some close calls here in the last few years. It’s dark out there, the streets are icy and even after we discontinued throwing candy, there’s still been some close calls with people almost getting hurt,” Miller said.

Miller told EastIdahoNews.com that throwing candy during the light parade has been discontinued for the last two years for safety reasons, but handing out candy and goodies will be coming back since the floats are all staying in one place. 

He added that it’s easy to search for “parade accidents” or “parade injuries” online and find a list of stories about incidents from around the country. 

EastIdahoNews.com found two recent fatalities. An 8-year-old died in a Utah Fourth of July parade accident in 2022. The girl was reportedly performing with a cheer team when she was hit by a vehicle that was with the group, FOX 13 in Salt Lake City reported.  

There was also an 11-year-old girl in North Carolina who died after being hit by a float during a Christmas parade in 2022, according to CBS17.com.

Miller made it clear that nothing like this has happened in the city of Ammon but wanted to make sure it was prevented. 

“We are trying to be proactive,” Miller said. 

The response from the community has been overwhelmingly positive about the change, but there have been some concerns and disappointments because it’s different from previous years. 

“We get that, we knew that there would be. But I would say that you can still see the floats, you can visit the floats all night, you can vote on your favorites. It’s still going to be very, very fun,” Miller said. 

A couple thousand people are expected to attend. 

Bonneville County Sheriff’s Office Sgt. Bryan Lovell said having a moving parade in the dark is a different dynamic than in the daylight, and it can add extra safety concerns. 

“You have some lighting, but what lighting is there limits your visibility in other areas where you just have a higher concentration of moving vehicles and people in and around that. You have a fair risk of somebody getting injured, and they (the city of Ammon) just want to avoid that but still have an event where everyone can come and enjoy,” Lovell said. 

Lovell said parents and their kids need to be extra mindful. Watch for people getting in and out of cars and use crosswalks. Drivers need to pay attention too. 

Since there is limited parking at McCowin Park, there will be free shuttles at Hillcrest High School running all evening. Park on the east side where the main office entrance lot is, and shuttles will go from Owen Street to the event. 

“We just really want to emphasize: Please come out and enjoy the night. We know it’s a little different, we know it’s a change but it’s still going to be a lot of fun. It’s just going to be a great event,” Miller added. 

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