With New Year’s Eve almost a month away, the City of Tampa says it has no plans to host Mayor Jane Castor’s signature event, the “New Yarrghs Eve Booty Drop.”
In an email to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay, City of Tampa Marketing and Communications Director Ashley Bauman said safety is the number one concern, adding that while the event hasn’t been officially canceled, “there has been no planning. Essentially the same thing.”
She also said no replacement event is currently planned.
The Booty Drop, a pirate-themed, family-friendly New Year’s Eve celebration in Curtis Hixon Park featuring a 320-foot 3-D projection of a dropping treasure chest on the Sykes Building, was first debuted last year as a new tradition under Castor’s administration.
When asked if the City of Tampa still has the St. Patrick’s Day River of Green event on the schedule, Bauman said “We’re not assuming anything, just moving event to event.”
Earlier today, Tampa Bay’s annual Gasparilla parade events, which attracted hundreds of thousands of attendees, was postponed until April, citing concerns over the pandemic. Also, the Gasparilla International Film Festival was postponed until May.
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