4th On Broadway Parade Drops Another Lubbock Tradition

The parade for this year’s “4th On Broadway” celebration will undergo a significant change. A major safety concern has finally been addressed.

The road to this year’s 4th On Broadway celebration has been rocky. It all started when a late announcement revealed that Broadway Festivals was not going to host the festival anymore. Some of that cancellation was due to the founder’s death, but it still feels like an abrupt and unexplained ending to the partnership.

The City of Lubbock stepped in and found people with the time and tenacity to try to pull off an event this year. It’s going to be different, but it will still happen—just on a much smaller scale.

What’s Missing From This Year’s Celebration

I still believe the heart of 4th On Broadway was the music and entertainment tents. I think that’s why the founder put so much muscle behind this event. This year, unfortunately, those tents—with local artists—are not part of the celebration.

Instead, this year’s event will feature the parade, followed by an evening concert and fireworks. It’s a decent way to celebrate the 4th, but you can see how it leaves a giant hole in the middle of the day.

Not all change is bad though—there’s a subtle but important change in the parade itself. According to Everything Lubbock, no one will be allowed to throw candy from the floats this year. Instead, people will walk closer to the crowd and hand out candy directly.

This safety measure was likely necessary, but it removes more than you might think. Kids and crowds loved catching candy tossed from floats—they enjoyed that little connection with the people on the floats.

So here's the question: if all the kids are going to do is wait for someone to walk by with candy, what’s the point of the floats at all? Yes, it’s nitpicky, but it’s definitely something interesting to watch this year.