Jamestown Christmas Parade

Parade Is This Evening With Tree Lighting To Follow By Patrick Fanelli pfanelli@post-journal.com  Evening With Tree Lighting 12/7/2007 - The annual holiday parade has been months in the making, but it has finally arrived — the official start of the holiday season in Jamestown. With little precipitation in the forecast and with temperatures expected just under the 32-degree freezing point, the Downtown Jamestown Development Corp. expects the event to go off without a hitch. Roughly 100 entries are expected to participate, and the parade will begin at 6:30 p.m. and is expected to finish its trek to Tracy Plaza for the Christmas Tree lighting approximately one hour later. ''It's certainly one of the biggest parades in Western New York,'' said Lee Harkness, DJDC executive director. ''We have people coming from all over the county, from Bradford, Warren, Olean. It's one of the most premier activities of the holiday season.'' State Sen. Cathy Young, R-Olean, will lead the holiday host in her post as parade grand marshall, and William Daly, Chautauqua County planning and economic development director, will be the event announcer. In addition, Ben Blood, 2007 Chautauqua Lake Idol winner, will be singing this year's National Anthem. The floats will span a variety of Christmas films and elements. Films on which some of the floats are based include ''A Christmas Story,'' ''How the Grinch Stole Christmas'' and ''Polar Express.'' A variety of activities will take place before and after the parade. Ballerinas will be featured at 19 W. Third St. from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Pre-parade entertainment will begin at 6:15 p.m. provided by the Reg Lenna Civic Center's Drama Enrichment Program in front of Tracy Plaza on Third Street. Candy will be handed out — not thrown, which has been prohibited for safety reasons — along the parade route, which spans all of Third Street from across the bridge all the way to Tracy Plaza. In addition, U.S. postal carriers will be picking up letters to Santa Claus, and live reindeer have been transported to Jamestown and will be featured across the street from the Reg Lenna Civic Center. The first-ever Snowball Drop, sponsored by the Jamestown Cycle Shop, will take place between the lighting of the Christmas tree at Tracy Plaza and the start of the fireworks display, according to Ms. Reynolds, and it will consist of dozens of ping pong balls being dropped into the street from 50 t0 75 feet up in the air. ''The lights will go on, the snowballs will drop and the fireworks will go off. At least, that's the plan,'' Ms. Reynolds said. ''There will be discounts, sales stuff, free giveaways. ... You collect them and redeem them at the specified business or restaurant.'' Participating businesses include the YMCA, Jakes Uptown Grill, Jamestown Dance Supply, Roberto's, Liscandro's, Lander's Men's Store, Suburban Blend, the Reg Lenna Civic Center and the Basket Company. ''It's really a family event,'' Ms. Reynolds said of the parade. ''We want to instill memories — long-lasting memories.''   For more information on Chautauqua Lake Real Estate & Living visit: www.chautauqualakehomes.com