River O Green Festival - Ivy Lupco Tampa Downtown Partnership

Tampa dyes the Hillsborough River green again Saturday (14th), as part of a daylong celebration of St. Patrick's Day. There's also a parade, Irish music, Irish dancing, kid-friendly features, and Irish beer. for the grownups. We speak with Ivy Lupco of the Tampa Downtown Partnership about the River O' Green Festival. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Gordon Bird here with Beyond the News. It's almost time
for the Hillsboro River to turn green again in downtown Tampa.
The River of Green Festival is happening Saturday, and we
speak with Ivy Lupko, who is the placemaker for the
Tampa Downtown Partnership and Ivy Lopco. Thank you very much
for joining us on Beyond the News.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
Thank you so much for having me. Well.

Speaker 1 (00:21):
Now, first of all, of course this is happening on Saturday,
which is of course the fourteenth of March. Saint Patrick's
Day is on the seventeenth, so it's it's displaced to
the weekend because of where the seventeenth falls. But there's
so much going on to this event, and of course
it's built up over several years. It's not just the

(00:42):
dying of the river. It's music and its food, and
it's a parade, and you really cram a lot into
five hours, and you have a lot that's new this year,
So let's start with that.

Speaker 3 (00:52):
Yeah. Absolutely, So we really try hard on ensuring that
there is something for everybody when they come down to
River or Green. So this year, some of our new
activations is we have what we are calling the We
Lads Shamrock Shops. We have partnered with a local organization,
Kids Market Us, and they're a bunch of kiddo entrepreneurs
coming out to River Agreen to sell their goods and

(01:15):
their retailing and we're excited to feature them. Another new
feature we have as we have partnered with Downtown Crawlers
and they will be hosting our VIP, which is the
first year that we have had a VIP with any
sort of ticketed component, but that will happen throughout the
entire duration of the program. And then we of course
have all of our returning performers such as Patio Furniture,

(01:39):
Irish Buskers, and our new headliner this year is Shane
Byrne and he is flying in directly from Ireland to
perform at our River Agreen.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
And that's, I guess the amazing thing. One of the
amazing things about the event is you're able to get
so many Irish themed musical and dance acts around Saint
Patrick's Day, which I have to think is sort of
like trying to book Trans Siberian Orchestra for Christmas.

Speaker 3 (02:03):
Yes, it is a little challenging, but you know, we're
really lucky that the Irish culture within our area wants
to come out and be present. So we've even been
lucky enough to find some local dance teams, which is
this year we'll have the Finnegan Irish dancers back for
about a third year in a row, so we're excited
for their performances to return to the stage.

Speaker 1 (02:23):
Now you begin, of course with the greening of the
river that takes place at eleven am Saturday. I know
this comes up every year, but tell us about the
die that you use on the river.

Speaker 3 (02:33):
Yeah, so we will once again be coloring the Hillsborough
River a vibrant Kelly green. The coloring is environmentally safe,
it's non toxic, it's biodegradable. It's the same product that's
used at other Saint Patrick's celebrations within other cities nationwide.
It's approved for short term use by the Environmental Protection
Commission of Hillsborough County. And the process is really fun actually,

(02:56):
So when they pour the solution, they utilize one small
boat and then we have a bunch of local entities
that are driving and swirling around to stir it up
to really create that deeper pigment within the water.

Speaker 1 (03:10):
And how long does the color last.

Speaker 3 (03:12):
You know, people ask thought all the time and it
really just depends.

Speaker 2 (03:15):
So it depends on the current and the wind.

Speaker 3 (03:18):
Really, the more current that we have, the quicker dissipates.
The less current we have, the longer it stays saturated
within the footprint of our program.

Speaker 1 (03:28):
No, of course, one of the big events is the
Saint Patrick's Day Parade that's put on involving the Rough Riders,
and that takes place at two o'clock in the afternoon,
and they have some VIP seating involved with that. But
what are some other good spots along the parade route
which really goes right by Curtis Sixon in downtown.

Speaker 3 (03:47):
Yeah, so you know, we're really excited to once again
partner with the Rough Riders Parade. And my favorite part
about this year is one it is at two o'clock,
so it really aligns with our program incredibly well. But
they've also reversed their route, so they used to end
at Curtis Hickson and this year they're starting at Curtis
Hickson from the cast Bridge, coming through right across our

(04:08):
program at the beginning.

Speaker 2 (04:09):
So honestly, I.

Speaker 3 (04:10):
Think the best spot you're going to get is right
next to Curtis Hickson where River Green is happening.

Speaker 1 (04:15):
Now, what do people need to know about parking and
getting around the festival and planning their trip down town Saturday.

Speaker 3 (04:23):
Yeah, so we like to say that earlier the better
plan ahead. There, you know, with a parade, there are
a lot of street closures, and they all will begin
near the festival about eleven am, but they can start
as early further away in their staging areas on the
west side of the river, as early as eight am.
So really just plan on being on time here for

(04:44):
the coloring at eleven, find your space at ten.

Speaker 2 (04:48):
You'll be just fine.

Speaker 1 (04:50):
The River Green Festival happening again Saturday in downtown Tampa.
Ivy Lopko with the Tampa Downtown Partnership, thank you very
much for joining us on Beyond the New.

Speaker 2 (05:00):
Thank you so much. We look forward to having you