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Huge crowd expected to ring in 2020 downtown

4 years 2 months 4 weeks ago Monday, December 30 2019 Dec 30, 2019 December 30, 2019 8:55 PM December 30, 2019 in News
Source: WBRZ

BATON ROUGE - On the second to last day of 2019, Downtown Baton Rouge is quiet. Soon enough Town Square will be packed with families for the 7th Annual Red Stick Revelry.

"I think this is the biggest New Year's Eve celebration outside of New Orleans," Visit Baton Rouge CEO, Paul Arrigo said.

The event features live music, laser shows, and a fireworks display when the clock strikes midnight. Visit Baton Rouge says in years past, New Year's Eve is always one of the downtown area's biggest and busiest days. With good weather anticipated, that isn't expected to change.

"I would say 15,000 to 20,000 would be realistic," Arrigo said.

With tens of thousands anticipated to welcome 2020 downtown, law enforcement will be out in force.

"There will be a presence more than you would see just with our 5th district officers," Baton Rouge Police Sgt. Don Coppola said. "You will have our traffic officers and other officers that will be down there."

Baton Rouge Police will be focused on getting revelers in and out of downtown safely and smoothly. With a large number of attendees expected, parking could become an issue. 

"Uber down here and get a hotel room," Arrigo said. "Spend the night and uber back home. But parking, you know, we've got an awful lot of parking downtown, awful lot of parking availability."

"If you park on the roadway, make sure it's a legal spot," Coppola said. "There's plenty of parking garages downtown that you can utilize as well."

Attendees are urged to arrive early. The Red Stick Revelry starts at 8 p.m. and concludes with a fireworks show at midnight. 

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