Bangor will postpone — and rebrand — its July 4th celebration
Like many public events across Maine, the Bangor area’s traditional Independence Day celebration is being postponed because of public health concerns. It’s also changing its identity.
The festivities, which typically include a parade, fireworks, concerts and more, will take place Saturday, Sept. 5, according to a news release Wednesday from the nonprofit group that organizes them. And the celebration will be called “COVID Independence Day” in honor of sacrifices Mainers have made to stem the pandemic.
“We feel moving the celebration to the Saturday before Labor Day will still give everyone in the area an opportunity to celebrate our independence from not one, but two truly remarkable events in our history — remarkable, unfortunately, in very different ways,” said Michael Fern, president of the Greater Bangor 4th of July Corp.
While business and public recreation activities are slowly resuming across the state under a plan led by Gov. Janet Mills, her timetable currently doesn’t allow gatherings of 50 people or more until after August. Other high-profile summer events, such as the TD Beach to Beacon 10K road race, have already been canceled or postponed.
Besides its new date and new name, the rescheduled Bangor celebration will be different in other ways. Scheduled concerts and a public pancake breakfast won’t be held, in order to prevent tightly packed crowds.
The parade will go on, but there will be some changes. Participants and spectators will need to follow social distancing guidelines along the 2-mile parade route, said Doug Damon, parade chair of the 4th of July Corp.
In addition, the organizers may adopt safety measures used at the Maine Bicentennial Parade, now scheduled for Aug. 15 in Lewiston and Auburn.
“Our parade is waiting in the wings where we can organize it quickly once we’re sure that September will work, without complications or with any changes based on any feedback we get,” said Damon. “The feedback will be used and considered in our planning phase for the parade.”
The organization has set a deadline of Aug. 20 to announce any future cancellation or postponement beyond Sept. 5, according to the release.
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