Businesses, police gear up for 33rd annual St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival

NORTH MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (WMBF) - Businesses along the main street not only get a front-row seat to the St. Patrick’s Day parade and festival, but they also get a little luck of the Irish with hundreds of customers flooding in.

Sweet treats inside of Main Street Bakery & Eatery are turning green for the big event. Owner Kimberly Perkins said they typically see thousands walk through the door during the celebration so they’re gearing up.

“Everything is turning green if you take a look around the bakery from our cookies to our cupcakes. We have a really neat cupcake called a pot of gold which is made with Guinness beer and inside it actually has gold sprinkles,” said Perkins.

Right next door, Southern Serendipity, a boutique, is also getting into the spirit with shamrock earrings and t-shirts you can wear to the festival.

Assistant manager, Kristen Taylor, said they expect hundreds to flood in after the parade and it’s always a great event for the business.

“We are hoping to get about close to 500 people throughout the day. The first two hours are mainly focused on viewing the parade and then the festival and the traffic in and out of the boutique is wonderful,” said Taylor.

Meanwhile, it will be Southern Smoothies first year getting in on the fun, and owner Al Madison said they are gearing up with a green smoothie. He said he’s excited to kick off Southern Smoothies’ first full season of business with the parade and festival.

“From what I understand it’s a lot of fun this parade. There’s going to be a lot of vendors out here and tons of people. The store itself should be extremely busy and we’re looking forward to it and to serve some delicious smoothies,” said Madison.

The city is expecting over 30,000 people to attend this year’s celebration.

The North Myrtle Beach Police Department says they will be on the grounds ready to assist if anyone is in need of help or if there is any trouble.

Not only will police officers be there, but also some of their K9′s to do sweeps of the area.

Police officers say because of the large crowd, the most common issue they run into is theft.

“As long as people keep all of their valuables either on their person. Don’t leave your car doors unlocked, don’t leave anything sitting out in plain view in your car. Help try to prevent yourself from being a target,” Sergeant Ray Pollock said.

The North Myrtle Beach St. Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival kicks off along Main Street Saturday at 9 a.m.

The festival with music, vendors and more goes from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information about the parade route and traffic click here.

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