Nelson Santa Parade exceeding expectations, 60 floats on board

Photo / Supplied

The Santa Parade in Nelson this year is exceeding expectations of the organisers with about 60 floats expected to take part on Sunday.

Hayden Rose, alongside long-serving event MC Murray Leaning, stepped in to revive the event after it was cancelled by the Nelson City Council in October.

A new trust has been formed to manage the event with a number of volunteers.

Rose said the response to the event, which is being sponsored by The Hits radio station, has been fantastic.

"We were sort of hoping for 50 floats and would've settled on 30 so we are very happy."

The city council opted to pull out of organising the event in case unexpected cases of Covid-19 meant it would have to cancel at the last minute.

Rose said they decided to step in because "it just had to be done".

"After the first story was published about it being cancelled, people weren't happy. Murray got a lot of messages and we knew something had to be done."

Rose said it has been a very short turnaround and a lot of people have put in a lot of work to make it happen.

"We are really looking forward to it. A lot of work went into it and we're really excited to see it come together and then building on it next year."

MC Murray Leaning said it's not just about Rose and himself.

"There is a fantastic group of volunteers and new trustees. The parade wouldn't be possible without their input, enthusiasm, hard work and passion.

"Christmas is coming back to Nelson."

The parade route is approximately 730m long, beginning from Hardy St and finishing in the Hathaway Carpark starting at 1pm.

Rose said there will be lots of great floats, music and community groups on display.

Some inner-city roads will be closed between 12pm and 3pm on Sunday.

People are advised to get into the city before 12pm to avoid frustration with traffic and parking.

Hardy St will be closed between Collingwood St and Church St. Park St will be closed and Trafalgar St will be closed from Hardy St to Hathaway Terrace including Trafalgar Park Lane and Hathaway Carpark.