CINCINNATI — Positioned along Northside's Fourth of July Parade route, Lou Doench's home boasts a front yard with two-level gardening walls that double as seating for him and his neighbors.
It's been an ideal spot to watch the celebrations for years, but thanks to a new city policy change, his property could now be left out of the fun.
"It's a part of Northside. It's our Mardi Gras," Doench said. "It's always an incredible expression of Northside's character."
The parade's origins date back to 1854, started by children at St. Joseph's Orphanage. It eventually moved to Hamilton Avenue, where crowds of thousands have flocked ever since to watch floats and dancers on Independence Day.
The fun spans 1.5 miles of Hamilton, starting at Greater Bethlehem Temple on the corner of Ashtree down to the park at the corner of Blue Rock, where Northside's Fourth of July Rock and Roll Carnival takes place.
Doench's home sits just over a mile into the route. The existing one, that is.
In March, the City of Cincinnati and the Cincinnati Police Department's Special Events Unit contacted the parade's organizers to discuss issues with the celebration.
Any event that shuts down city streets requires police officers to oversee those closures and maintain community and traffic safety. The parade's co-chair Becky Finnigan said that in the past, organizers have been able to manage the event with the services of 10-12 officers.
"When we had District 5 here representing Northside for CPD, their neighborhood liaison unit actually managed the parade detail and that has changed," Finnigan said.
The parade detail is now managed by CPD's Special Events Unit, which determined more police officers would be necessary to ensure proper safety at the event. Finnigan said CPD suggested 32 officers, more than doubling last year's detail.
WCPO reached out to the city about the change. A spokesperson said the parade's scale is significant, longer than both the Reds Opening Day Parade and the Pride Parade.
Because of that, the Fourth of July Parade requires ample police support. While last year, on-duty officers were permitted to staff special events, that's no longer the case.
"That policy has changed as it’s essential for on-duty officers to be available for calls of service, especially on a day as busy as the Fourth of July, when this parade takes place," the spokesperson said.
That leaves police coverage in the hands of off-duty officers who may or may not be willing to sign up. Finnigan said she and her co-chair have struck up a compromise with the city to agree to a 21-officer detail, a number Finnigan still doubts they'll be able to hit.
Even if they do, the community council would have to pay for the officers' services. Plus, they'd have to supplement the roles of officers cut in the compromise with 10 of their own community volunteers.
"So if we don't fill that detail, the parade has to change. Either it's canceled or its shortened and there's no way around that," Finnigan said. "And if we can't fill those volunteer positions, the same is true: the parade is either canceled or shortened."
The city has suggested alternate routes, including shortening the traditional 1.5-mile route by about half.
Finnigan said that would keep the parade only partially on Hamilton and move much of it through residential streets. The proposed shortened route would start in front of St. Boniface Church on the corner of Chase and Pitts Avenues and move down to Blue Rock.
That would cut the parade route in half.
"The idea of shortening the parade route is really, really upsetting," Doench said. "It's going to cram a couple thousand people that would normally be stretched all the way up to the Comet (pub) into a much smaller space. It's going to make it more crowded."
Finnigan said it would exclude a large section of the community and prevent many from being able to participate or spectate in what has historically been an inclusive celebration.
"People have an expectation that they know where the parade goes. They have a space where they put their chair every year to watch that parade and we're cutting off a significant portion of the neighborhood," she said.
The city said another reason they're pushing for a larger police detail is due to several close calls last year.
"Safety is the top priority of the city and following incidents of people driving through the event site last year, the city feels strongly about safely staffing this event," the spokesperson said.
Northside Community Council President Bree Moss said claims of cars slipping past barricades are completely unfounded.
"CPD has presented no evidence to that claim and we’ve been unable to corroborate it with any participants or spectators," said Moss, who also serves as the parade's co-chair.
The city said it does not want to see the parade canceled and will continue to work with organizers to find a solution.
"The city will continue to go through the permit process and stay in close contact with parade organizers, as it has been over the last several weeks. The city manager has been directly involved in those conversations and is confident we will come to a resolution that will allow for the parade to safely continue," the spokesperson said.
In the meantime, Finnigan is pointing the community to an online petition. Aimed at preserving the parade's history and keeping the route along its 1.5-mile path down Hamilton, it's garnered close to 1,000 signatures as of Wednesday night.
"We think that support can really go a long way in convincing the city that are alternative solutions to maintain safety and not affect the historic nature of this event," said Finnigan.
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