Organizers of Monday’s annual Martin Luther King Jr. Marade anticipate up to 70,000 people could attend — if the weather is nice.
The National Weather Service forecast on Jan. 10 predicts a slight chance of snow showers on Monday with a high near 42 degrees.
The event begins at 9:30 a.m. with speeches at City Park. The parade follows at 10:45 a.m. and runs down Colfax Avenue from Columbine Street to Bannock Street. Colfax will be closed to traffic during the Marade. A program will follow in Civic Center.
Vern Howard, commission chair, said it’s hard to predict how many people will march. But given the midterm elections, governor’s race and loud politics in Washington, he suspected the crowd could be large.
The 2015 event drew a record-breaking crowd of 30,000.
In 2016, the Marade was interrupted by Black Lives Matter protesters. Although the 2017 Marade ran smoothly, Howard said organizers are keeping their guard up, noting that once it happens, it’s always a concern it will happen again.
