It's fair to say most observers would call the construction along Broadway — just north of downtown — and the new buildings nearby a mess.
Because of that construction, two of Fiesta's three parades will take a new route to the Alamo.
The Battle of Flowers and Fiesta Flambeau Parades traditionally follow a route that starts on Broadway, but this year, they will instead begin at Main and Locust and then follow a Lexington to St. Mary's to Brooklyn route before heading to the Alamo.
The new route will also be in place for Fiesta 2023. The Texas Cavalier's River Parade will be remain unchanged.
While some residents of those new upscale apartments with balconies along Broadway will be disappointed not to see the parades pass by, some residents along the new route are looking forward to a closer look from their sidewalks.
Lynn Knapik, a local realtor and board member of the Tobin Hill Neighborhood Community Association, said it could be fun.
"We're always looking for things that the neighborhood could get excited about. And so since it's going to be starting in the neighborhood and going through the neighborhood, I've shared this with other board members and so they are all excited about seeing how we can have fun with the two parades," she said
For the first time since the pandemic began two years ago, the city's biggest celebration of the year, Fiesta, is back to scale.
2020 marked the first year Fiesta was not held since the start of World War II.
Fiesta events across the city attract millions of visitors and generate more than $340 million for the local economy. Many nonprofits use the event as their chief fundraising event each year.
