Parades & Festival Info:
The River Park Neighborhood Association (RPNA) is pleased to host its Annual 4th of July Parades and Festival. This Festival is a River Park tradition. So, if you are new to the neighborhood, it is a great way to meet your neighbors and see why living in River Park can’t be beat. There will be live music, food trucks, carnival games/contests, balloon artists, face painters, and caricaturists. It’s great fun for adults and kids of all ages!
Street Closures: Carlson Drive from Camellia Avenue to Sandburg Drive will be briefly closed during the Classic Car Parade and the Firecracker Parade. See parade routes map at the bottom of this page.
Classic Car Parade (8:30 am cars lineup at Ciavarella Field, parade starts 9:00 am – 9:30 am depending on the number of vehicles): No political signage or imagery is permitted – this is a nonpartisan community celebration. American flags are welcome and encouraged. The cars will be driving down Moddison, crossing Carlson, left on Sandburg, left on Monalee, right on Minerva, right on Callister, left on Carlson, and ending at Glenn Hall Park. After the parade, vehicles can only exit south down Sandburg to the Camellia Street exit. No vehicle access will be permitted through Carlson Drive once festivities begin.
Firecracker Parade (10 am): Kids of all ages, bring your decorated bikes, scooters and wagons and parade down Carlson Drive to Glenn Hall Park with your friends and family! Line-up for parade participants begins at 9:30 am in the front of Caleb Greenwood Elementary School between Camellia Avenue and Callister Avenue. This parade starts at the corner of Callister and Carlson Drive promptly at 10 am. The parade is a four block route which culminates at Glenn Hall Park.
Festival (immediately following Firecracker Parade): After the parade, join us for the festival at Glenn Hall Park! All bikes, wagons and scooters need to park behind the big inflatable slide. To do so, children and their families should enter the park at the far east end of the park, near the redwood grove. There will be a stanchioned bike parking area for children participating in the Decorated Bike Contest. Also, there will be a designated area there for all other bikes, wagons and scooters. The only ADA access will be at the edge of the park near the redwood grove.
Music: At approximately 10:30 am, attendees will enjoy a brief concert by our local River Park Marching Musicians and immediately following will be the rock/funk sounds of the live band, Todd Morgan and the Emblems.
Carnival: Children young and old will enjoy favorite games and contests at the Carnival for a nominal fee of $7, available at the Carnival Sales booth to the left of the bandstand. The Kids’ Cupcake Eating Contests will be offered for an additional $5 per participant. Cash and credit/debit cards will be accepted at the Carnival ticket sales booth.
Food Trucks (Open from 9:30 am until 1:00 pm): Several food trucks, including a dessert truck, will be at the park starting at 9:30 am.
Chalk Art: Another great Fourth of July Activity is the River Park Neighborhood Association Chalk Art Gallery! Make patriotic themed art with your friends, family or by yourself! Show your community just how creative you are while having fun! This year’s theme is “Happy 250th America”!
- FREE chalk will be available at Caleb Greenwood (on the bench near the cross walk), Glenn Hall Park (in the children’s playground) and Ciavarella Field (by the sign) during the day, as well as at the Carnival ticket sales booth during the 4th of July Festival at Glenn Hall Park. Pick a location near your house, at the children’s playground at the park, or wherever you find your perfect spot, and make your design!
- Email a photo of your finished product to the RPNA at sacramentorpna@gmail.com by 7/7 to be included in the RP Electronic Chalk Art gallery posted to the RPNA website, social media, and distributed through the RPNA e-mail list. Please include the name you want attributed to the art.
Scrapbook Initiative: We invite you to bring photos to the RPNA table—whether they’re treasured images from years past or more recent neighborhood moments. Digital photos are welcome, but if you have printed photos you’re willing to donate, even better!
Our goal is to collect and preserve the memories that make our community special and create an updated neighborhood photo album to enjoy at future events. Thank you for helping us celebrate the people, places, and moments that make River Park such a wonderful place to call home.
RPNA Membership: If you are interested in becoming an RPNA member or want to check the status of your membership, please stop by the RPNA booth during the festival! There will be River Park T-shirts with new designs and other River Park themed items sold at the booth. The membership booth will have a patriotic themed photo booth opportunity as well as an historic American flag from 1896 loaned to RPNA for the Festival by River Park Resident Dave Lane.
