Chicago goes green & parades roll
Chicago’s South Side Irish Parade stepped off in the Beverly neighborhood today and the city dyed the Chicago River green to mark St. Patrick’s Day festivities on March 14–15 [](https://blockclubchicago.org/2026/03/14/chicago-river-dyed-green-to-mark-st-patricks-day-2026). Crowds and community turnout remain strong despite a noisy news week, a good local event for festival fans and photographers.
More than 100 parade entriescbsnews.com marched along Western Avenue between 103rd and 111th Street, with floats and bands staging across the morning before the noon start.fox32chicago.com The event’s grand marshal was the Tunnel to Towers Foundationcbsnews.com, which noted its 25th anniversary and sent representatives including Aric Grooms to accept the honor.cbsnews.com Parade chair Bill Letz—known locally as the “traffic cop on 103rd”—has been helping organize the South Side Irish Parade since 1985 and led the all‑volunteer committee this year.blockclubchicago.org St. Christina Parish served as this year’s honoree during its 100th‑anniversary observance, with clergy and parish groups riding on a dedicated float.cbsnews.com Members of Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union 130 released the dye from boats near the Columbus Drive bridges at about 10 a.m. Saturday, operating just west of the Columbus Drive bridge and east of Orleans.abc7chicago.com The dyeing traces back to the first official release in 1962littlechicagoguide.com, and crews now use a vegetable‑derived, environmentally safe powder that reacts in the water to produce the signature emerald color.timeout.com
