BRADENTON BEACH – Bradenton Beach Marina owner and president Mike Bazzy has presented his preliminary plans for the third annual Bradenton Beach Holiday Lighted Boat Parade taking place Saturday, Dec. 4.
The 2020 boat parade was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic and its return will coincide with the return of the annual Christmas on Bridge Street celebration taking place the same day.
The holiday events are being organized by Bazzy, Paradise Boat Tours General Manager Sherman Baldwin and participating Bridge Street merchants. The Christmas on Bridge Street festivities will include live music and more, with additional details forthcoming. The December holiday events will be preceded by the annual Bridge Street Christmas tree lighting ceremony on Saturday, Nov. 20.
Seeking financial support for the boat parade and Christmas on Bridge Street, Bazzy appeared before the Bradenton Beach Community Redevelopment Agency (CRA) on Wednesday, Oct. 6. He then appeared before the city commission on Thursday, Oct. 7. As they did in 2019, the CRA and the city commission each agreed to provide $500 in financial support for the boat parade and Christmas on Bridge Street.
Bazzy said he hopes to have 15-20 boats participate in this year’s boat parade.
Later in the week, Bazzy provided some additional boat parade details via email. According to Bazzy, the parade will begin at 6 p.m. and the participating vessels will gather ahead of time near the south end of Jewfish Key. The parade will head northwest along the Longboat Pass Bridge and then north up the Intracoastal Waterway. The parade will pass alongside the Bridge Street Pier and end at the Bradenton Beach Marina. The parade can be viewed from the Longboat Pass Bridge from 6-6:30 p.m. or from the Bridge Street Pier from 6:30-7 p.m.
“I invite boat owners to decorate their vessels and join the fun. The parade is open to powerboats and sailboats and entry into the parade is free,” Bazzy stated in his email.
The best-decorated boat will earn a $200 cash prize.
For entry forms and more information, call the Bradenton Beach Marina at 941-778-2288, or visit the boat parade website.
Those who don’t have a boat of their own are invited to participate in the boat parade as passengers aboard the marina’s “Anna Maria Princess” paddle wheeler. Those seats can be secured by visiting the boat parade website and the ticket proceeds will be donated to fighting children’s cancer.
The Sun is a sponsor of the Bradenton Beach Holiday Lighted Boat Parade and Christmas on Bridge Street.
