The enormous Krewe of Endymion parade, which customarily begins on Orleans Avenue at the edge of City Park, is currently set to run on a shortened route in 2023 that would chop off eight blocks on Orleans and begin at the corner of Orleans and South Carrollton Avenue, according to a City Hall spokesperson.
But a meeting this week between New Orleans Police Department brass and krewe officials could cement a deal — brewing since at least late last year — that would allow the superkrewe to keep to the traditional start of its route.
Confusion has reigned for months over where the great, glittering parade will officially begin when its dozens of floats, thousands of riders and procession of marching bands take to the streets on Saturday, Feb. 18 at 4:00 p.m.
The city trimmed all Carnival parade routes in 2022 due to personnel shortages, but Endymion had still started at its normal spot. In October, Carnival leaders said they'd be keeping those parade cuts in 2023.
In a Nov. 14 press release, the superkrewe announced a new end point at the Convention Center, a change in venue for the Endymion Extravaganza that's traditionally held at the Superdome. Renovations to the stadium will make holding it in the stadium impossible in 2023.
Endymion officials also acknowledged that eight blocks had been pruned from the start of the parade. But the map provided by the krewe was vague, and it was unclear if the parade would, in fact, be rolling along Orleans or simply driving into place and lining up there.
The specifics have big implications for the thousands of revelers that crowd the Orleans Avenue sidewalk and neutral ground every year.
Orleans Avenue has been part of the Endymion route since 1982, and the krewe's more than 3,000 riders are known for unleashing a blizzard of beads and baubles as they rumble past. Riders have long been instructed not to toss any throws before a parade's official start — a key note of contention in 2022 when parades were shortened.
In 2023, would Endymion krewe members be expected to hold their fire through a stretch of Mid-City that is ordinarily densely crowded with parade-goers?
Moreover, what would it all mean for revelers waiting to hear favorite marching bands, or hoping to catch sight of favorite marching krewes or signature floats?
The Krewe of Endymion rolls to 'Legends of Fire and Ice,' during its 55th annual parade in New Orleans Saturday, Feb. 26, 2022. Helen Trask Alford reigned as queen and Maurice Barre as king over the all-male, 3,200-rider Endymion procession. (Staff photo by Scott Threlkeld, NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune | The New Orleans Advocate)
Since late last year, Endymion leadership has lobbied to restore any lost territory.
Emails from NOPD Special Events Section Sgt. Herbert Warren IV to Endymion president Dan Kelly on Dec. 12 indicate that then-NOPD Superintendent Shaun Ferguson agreed to allow the krewe to hire Harbor Police to provide crowd control for the first leg of the parade, suggesting there was a path to restoring the full route.
As of Tuesday, the arrangement had apparently not been finalized, according to City Hall spokesperson Raven Frederick. But there appears to be hope.
Frederick said that “there is a meeting about this tomorrow (Wednesday) evening with NOPD leadership,” suggesting perhaps that a revision to the current plan is possible.
Endymion president Dan Kelly declined to comment.
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Endymion parade's starting spot in doubt; deal possible to allow krewe to roll on Orleans Avenue - NOLA.com
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