ALACHUA ‒ Main Street Alachua was alive with the holiday spirit this past Saturday, Dec. 9 as the Alachua Chamber of Commerce hosted the annual Christmas Parade through the downtown area. Annually, businesses, government departments, civic groups, churches and more sponsor floats to entertain spectators and compete for prizes.

On Saturday, children anxiously awaited the parade for a chance to see Santa Claus and secure sweet treats tossed from decorated floats or handed out by people walking alongside.

The parade featured some 73 floats decorated in this year’s toy land theme. The excitement and spirit of Christmas celebration were evident as children scampered around while waiting for the festivities to begin.

Parade participants lined up along North Main Street, and with a police escort of police cars and motorcycle patrolmen, the parade crossed U.S. Highway 441 to the sounds of wailing sirens accompanied by blue and red flashing lights.

Families and friends lined the street, some in lawn chairs, other perched on the curb, while still others stood, to watch the procession. Three law enforcement organizations were represented as Alachua Police Chief Jesse Sandusky was joined by High Springs Police Chief Antoine Sheppard and Alachua County Deputy Chad Scott as they walked the parade route leading the procession.

The parade's grand marshal, longtime resident, businessman, and Chamber of Commerce member Jerry Smith greeted the hometown crowd from a vintage blue convertible Mustang.

The City of Alachua’s float, featuring a huge toy chest filled with oversized stuffed toys, carried members of the Alachua City Commission.

Volunteers, walking alongside the floats, were dressed in Christmas dress or portrayed characters such as Santa's elves, and handed out candy to the children along the parade route. For the children, it was an exciting experience, seeing the colorful floats and costumed characters, along with free candy and gifts.

Other float sponsors and participants included Mi Apa Restaurant, Girl Scouts, MatchMaker Realty, All Stars Twirling Academy, Momentum Dance Academy, Santa Fe Babe Ruth Baseball team, the Alachua Business League, Alachua County Property Appraiser Ayesha Solomon, Santa Fe Soccer Academy, the Mebane Cheer squad, Hare Krishna members and a long list of others.

Parade favorite Santa Fe High School Raider Regiment engaged the crowd with their holiday melodies and were accompanied by Santa Fe High School’s festively dressed dance teams and the varsity cheerleader squad.

As each float passed the judge’s stage at the intersection of 148^th Place and Main Street, parade MC's Ben Boukari, Jr., Damon Messina and Robert Bonetti announced the sponsor of each float, oftentimes pausing long enough to chat with the participants.

The parade finale was the star of the show as Santa Claus waved to the children as he rode by perched on top of a firetruck. Excited youngsters waved and called out Santa's name, surely thinking about gifts he may leave under their tree to be discovered Christmas morning.

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GAINESVILLE, Fla. (Dec. 20, 2023) – It’s a time for wrapping presents and decorating the home – inside and out – with lights, trees, wreaths and more.

 If you’ve brought down the lights from the attic, only to plug them in and find out they no longer work, don’t toss them in your recycle bin. Instead, the City of Gainesville’s Solid Waste division offers these helpful recycling tips:

• Drop off stringed holiday lights for recycling at the main entrance to the City’s Public Works building (405 NW 39th Ave.) through the end of January 2024.
• Holiday lights also may be recycled year-round at any Alachua County Rural Collection Centers.
• Other lights such as bubble lights, compact florescent bulbs (CFLs), florescent tubes, liquid-filled lights and neon lights, should be taken to the Alachua County’s Household Hazardous Waste Collection Centers for disposal.

 If you’ve decided to replace your artificial tree with a natural pine or fir this year, artificial trees can be disposed of curbside as part of the residential bulk collection program.

• Artificial trees taller than five feet in length should be broken down into smaller pieces before placing curbside for collection.
• To donate artificial trees in good condition, search the City’s Zero Waste Wizard for a list of local reuse stores.

 Natural trees and wreaths also are accepted for collection curbside with regularly collected yard waste.

• Remember to remove all tinsel, garland, ornaments, hooks, lights, wires and other decorations from natural trees and wreaths before placing them curbside for pickup.
• Remember to remove tree stands and store for next year.

 Once the presents have been unwrapped, make sure to sort the gift wrap.

• Only non-glittery wrapping paper is accepted for recycling and may be placed with other recyclable paper in orange recycle bins. 
• Toss shiny and metallic foil wrap in your garbage cart.

 Enjoy the popcorn, cookies and sweets; metal holiday tins are accepted for recycling.

• Remember to empty the tins and remove the lids before placing them in blue recycle bins. 

For more information, visit the City of Gainesville website or email waste@GainesvilleFL.gov

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• Administrative Offices: closed Dec. 25-26, and Jan. 1
• Rural Collection Centers: closed Dec. 25 and Jan. 1
• Leveda Brown Environmental Park & Transfer Station: closed Dec. 25 and Jan. 1
• Hazardous Waste Collection Center: closed Dec. 25 and Jan. 1