SCRANTON, Pa. — The City of Scranton will have to wait at least one more week to see a St. Patrick's parade in March again.
The last time was three years ago as the regularly scheduled parades in 2020 and 2021 were canceled because of the pandemic.
Checking in to the Hilton downtown, Penny Townes of Wilke-Barre was looking forward to a big weekend.
"Drink, lots of eating and see the parade, the bands, and stuff. But, you know, what are you going to do?" said Townes.
The impending Pennsylvania weather forced the parade committee to postpone the long-awaited event. Still, General Manager Robert Trotta says the Hilton is keeping the party going.
"We're not canceling anything, we're still going full-blown. As far as we're concerned, it is St. Patty's Day and we're going to continue to think that way. We have our hotel guests and we're going to give them the time of their life whether the parade is happening or not," said Trotta.
Management at The V-Spot is still trying to figure out if their original plans are possible with the weather, but bartender John Casper expects Scrantonians and visitors to show up.
"There's a good chance that if you're safe and you can make it out, that you'll probably find a really fun place to go, but if not then you'll probably make provisions and have a really good time anyway," said Casper.
Bars and restaurants tell us they loaded up with food and drinks anticipating a big weekend, but waiting a week is better than not seeing parade crowds at all.
"There will probably be a really good opportunity to make it up. Last year, when the parade was completely canceled, that totally destroyed all the stuff that they had bought and they just had to sit on it," said Casper.
Parade or not, Townes says she's still going to enjoy her weekend, "I think the bars will like me a little more."
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