Lexington’s St. Patrick’s celebration, delayed for two years by the COVID pandemic, will have to wait another year to return to downtown Lexington.
The Bluegrass Irish Society announced Thursday that a winter storm watch for bitterly cold temperatures and snow on Friday into Saturday will cancel the parade scheduled for March 12. The Irish festival featuring arts, crafts, food vendors and entertainment will be Saturday, March 19, from 11 – 5 p.m. at Moondance Amphitheater
“As much as we want to hold our parade and festival as scheduled this week, it won’t be safe for our community and participants to be out in below-freezing weather,” said Megan Moloney, parade chair and Bluegrass Irish Society president.
“We’ve worked closely with Lexington Parks & Recreation to reschedule the St. Patrick’s festival for the following weekend, and we’re excited that many of our vendors and entertainers will be able to join us at Moondance,” Moloney said.
Events downtown on March 19, including the KHSAA Boys Sweet 16 tournament at Rupp Arena at Central Bank Center, made rescheduling the parade difficult. The parade will return on Saturday, March 11, 2023.
This year’s parade grand marshal, Deirdre Lyons, will be honored at the festival on the 19th. An updated entertainment schedule will be released early next week featuring local Irish dance groups, pipe bands, Irish musical groups and solo artists. Look for the schedule on https://lexingtonstpatsparade.org/festival/ and Facebook.
Moondance Amphitheater is a Lexington Parks & Recreation facility located at 1152 Monarch St. in the Beaumont neighborhood.
