The Downtown Pedestrian Zone prepares to reopen on May 19 exclusively to pedestrians, cyclists, skateboarders and transit, setting in motion plans for activation on Canada Day in the downtown activity hub.
Once again, in the centre of the Pedestrian Zone at the intersection of Banff Avenue and Caribou Street, the Town will host a series of marching bands, dancers and performers from about 11:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. New this year on Banff Avenue, near Wolf Street, will be an art lane, with activities such as chalk art and live painting.
The art zone transitions to the Banff Community High School field, where the Family Fun Zone will feature a family-friendly stage, Canadian games and activities, and an Indigenous Peoples cultural area. The Family Fun Zone will run from 11 a.m. to approximately 5:30 p.m.
A “Wheeler Parade” of non-motorized wheeled transport (bikes, skateboards, etc.) hosted by the Community Commuters will start at 11:30 a.m. at the Protection Mountain Shelter on the south side of the Nancy Pauw Bridge and culminate in the centre of the Pedestrian Zone with judging of bicycle decorations by Mayor Corrie DiManno. All are welcome and can join in decorating bicycles with the help of Community Cruisers at the Protection Mountain Shelter, starting at 10:30 a.m.
The Town will host a main stage in Central Park from around 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. for live music and performances. Watch for announcements of new headliners and bands closer to the event at banff.ca/CanadaDay. The Canada Day Market is also a returning mainstay in Central Park.
The RCMP in full Red Serge will appear in various locations in town, along with roaming performers. Bear Street will feature the “Bear’s Den” cooling area with picnic tables and amenities in the central part of the street closed to vehicle traffic.
In 2018, 2019 and 2022, the Town of Banff provided a pyrotechnics display rather than traditional fireworks on Canada Day to decrease the noise impact on wildlife, as a responsible measure in a national park. Pyrotechnics have also been used on New Year’s Eve in 2019 and 2022. Even though pyrotechnics has reduced noise because there is no secondary explosion and the low altitude reduces the distance of sound travel, the shows still produced noise, bright flashes, smoke at crowd level and litter that had to be carefully recovered.
A pyrotechnics/fireworks show will not be held this year on Canada Day as Parks Canada reviews the impacts of noise and light flashes on wildlife, and the Town assesses the secondary impacts on pets, litter and people in the community.
For more information, visit banff.ca/CanadaDay