ELBERTA - The Town of Elberta is gearing up for two fun annual events. First off will be the Annual Mardi Gras Parade, rolling through the streets of downtown Elberta on Saturday, Feb. 13. Lineup begins at 1:30 p.m., with the parade beginning at 2. The route for the parade will be largely the same as previous parades, with one small change.

“We’re going to go ahead and extend the parade route, so instead of turning here at the church [left on Oak Street] we’re going to go all the way to Kichler Circle,” said councilmember Vicky Norris. “That should help with additional spacing people may be concerned about, allowing for more social distancing.”

Additionally, Norris has been contacted by krewes from Orange Beach, Gulf Shores, and even Pensacola and Mobile who may be interested in riding in Elberta’s parade.

“These krewes love to party, they love to roll, and when they saw that we’re still rolling they called,” she said. “Whether they come or not I can’t say, but I do know those bigger floats would never be able to make the turn from Oak Street onto Chicago Street to go back up to the school. I don’t think some of them would be able to manipulate that short turn, so extending the route will give them a better turn point.”

She has spoken with the town’s police department, which is prepared for the extension and believes it is manageable.

A change Mayor Jim Hamby would like riders to consider is placing candy in small Ziploc bags. Though parades normally don’t ride in rain events, the town’s Christmas parade saw rain come during the event, putting a damper on candy-pickup.

“Once you threw the candy, if it landed on the ground it would just stay on the ground because it was wet and nobody wanted it,” he said. “It was a problem.” The day after the Christmas parade, officials stated there was more leftover candy lying in the streets than during clear-weather events. Hamby said if the candy was protected in a bag, then even if rain comes through during the parade it would keep the bags’ contents safe.

Two weeks following the parade, the town will host its annual Arbor Day Event on Saturday, Feb. 27. The event lasts from 9 a.m. - 12 p.m., and citizens can come to receive free sprigs from the gazebo located in Elberta Town Park.

For more details on these events and more, follow the town’s Facebook page and visit https://townofelberta.com.