Christmas Parade Steps Off Today
With a theme of “Unity in the New Millennium,” the 33rd annual Pacoima Christmas Parade will march down Van Nuys Boulevard beginning at 9 a.m. today.
Radio personality George Lopez, of the station KCMG-FM (92.3), will be this year’s grand marshal.
Parade entries include Warner Bros. cartoon characters, equestrian groups, the Los Angeles Fire Department and the San Fernando High School marching band.
Assemblyman Tony Cardenas (D-Sylmar) and Los Angeles City Councilman Alex Padilla will also participate in the parade.
To make the route more festive this year, the city’s Cultural Affairs Department financed the purchase of green-and-red banners that read, “Seasons Greetings” and “Feliz Navidad.”
“They’re lined up along Van Nuys Boulevard and they really make the street look 100% better,” said David Gershwin, a spokesman for Padilla. “Now it looks very festive over there.”
The parade, which is expected to last about three hours, begins on Van Nuys Boulevard at Amboy Avenue and travels north on Van Nuys to Glenoaks Boulevard.
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