Inside effort to bring Fourth of July parade back to San Francisco for first time in decades

SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- For decades San Francisco has celebrated the Fourth of July with fireworks over the Bay, but there is one thing the city has not done to celebrate America's birthday since the bicentennial; 1976 was the last time there was a parade and one city supervisor is trying to change that.

"We deserve a Fourth of July Parade," said District 4 Supervisor, Joel Engardio. "We've never really had a Fourth of July parade in San Francisco, so if we're starting a new tradition let's be unique, let's be uniquely San Francisco."

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And, that includes hosting the parade on The Great Highway, which closes to traffic and transforms into a park on weekends.

"We're just going to have foot and people-powered floats so wagons and bikes, decorated to the hilt and really be family-friendly and enjoy each other's company," said the Engardio.

And people seem pretty pumped about the parade. "It's going to be amazing. I hope the weather's like today," Giada Dedonito, while enjoying the sun along Ocean Beach.

"I think it'd be pretty cool. Just a bunch of people like getting together and having the community out," said Beshoy Saad, a San Francisco resident. "It brings me back to high school when we had floats and those kinds of parades."

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"That would be awesome," added Lisa Kim. "It's the start of a tradition. I would love to be a part of a new tradition."

The only catch is, the date of the parade is a bit early.

"Our Fourth of July parade is on June 29 because it's a weekend and we want everyone to show up," said Engardio. "It's new. You might have plans already for the Fourth, so this means you have no excuse, so come out and do July 4 on June 29."