Santa brings his parade to Winnipeg on Saturday watch for reindeer and road closures

The annual Santa Claus Parade will make its way down Portage Avenue on Saturday, starting from the famous intersection with Main Streetat 5 p.m.

It will make its way west down Portagebefore turning south at Memorial Boulevard and ending at Memorial and St. Mary Avenue. There arenearly 60 entries listed for this year.

The celebrations, however, begin with a handful of block parties starting at 4 p.m., which means a number of road closures, some beginning as early as 11 a.m.

The southbound lanes of Main,between Portage and York avenues, will shut down at that earliest time, while the following will close at2 p.m.:

• Portage between Main and Memorial.
• Northbound Memorial between Portage and Broadway, and southbound between St. Mary and Broadway.

EdmontonStreet between Portage and Graham avenues will also be closed during the parade, along withVaughn Streetbetween Portage and Graham.

Some streets will be open but only for vehicles to access parkades. The full list is available here.

Established in 1909 by Eaton's department store, the Winnipeg parade is the city's longest-running free community event. It is now known as theManitoba Hydro Santa Claus Parade.

Due to rising costs, Eaton's stopped operating itin 1965. Capt. George Smith of the East Kildonan Fire Department, on behalf of the Winnipeg Firefighters Club, bought the rights to the parade for $1.50, marking thestartof the community-based format that the paradestill followsto this day, the websitesays.

From 1966 to 1975, Winnipeg firefighters worked closely with volunteers from schools around the citytocarry on the tradition. In 1975, the Winnipeg Jaycees, now JCI Winnipeg, took over stewardship.

In 1987, the Christmas Cheer Board began itsrelationship with theparade, collecting donations and non-perishable food items along the route.

Manitoba Hydro became involved in 2006, combining it with its annual parade, which was known as the Power Smart Festival of Lightsand ran from 1999 to 2005.

JCI Winnipeg and Manitoba Hydro agreed in 2007 to a joint-title sponsorship for the Christmas parade and in2012, a community-based not-for-profit, the Winnipeg Parade Committee Inc., was created to produce the event and ensure its sustainability.

Manitoba Hydro is now the primary sponsor.