Final Preparations For St. Patrick's Day In Savannah

The crowd has been building throughout the day...the weekend actually got so busy that River Street was shut down to foot traffic only part of both Friday and Saturday nights - an unscheduled but anticipated effort by police if the crowds warranted. Police said on Friday that the information they were getting from hotels led them to believe the mid-week celebration may be bigger than expected. St. Patrick's Day celebrations may have started over the weekend...but they're expected to kick into full gear tonight. River Street shutting down late Monday afternoon to cars - staying that way until 3 a-m Wednesday...metro police say Bay Street could be shut down as well if foot traffic warrants.

As the festival swings into gear - new rules go into effect on the river. Metro Police spokesperson Judy Pal says, “}if you are seen coming into that area with something that's prohibited - we'll ask you to take that back to your car or take it home and then you're welcome to come back.” Those prohibited items include weapons, skateboards, alcoholic beverages purchased outside the festival area and pets. And don't forget - even though there are no gates this year - you'll still need to purchase a wristband to drink in the street.

Despite some early predictions of a smaller crowd this St. Patrick's day - a very busy weekend has vendors here on River Street hoping for a more profitable than expected St. Patrick's Day holiday. John Henderson of Spanky’s says, “The weekend was really a good sign of a good start - it could be a down year - people may have left town but that frees up more space for the locals to come out and hopefully they will.” With nice weather predicted for the day - there's little doubt they will - but judging from the crowd’s downtown - there's still plenty of visitors here to enjoy the festivities as well. Jim Gottschalk is visiting from Wisconsin and can’t wait ‘til tomorrow, “the parade - I’m looking forward to seeing that. Unfortunately we don't have parades this size at home but we've got ringside seats.”

In addition to those rules for the festival area - Metro Police want to remind everyone that starting at 6am tomorrow - your car will be towed if you are parked along the parade route. They say meters in those areas have been bagged and signs have been posted so there's no excuse for being caught unaware.