Melissa Bailey Photo
“I grew up in East Haven, but … throughout my career, when people said where are you from, I’d always say New Haven,” said Rich Coppola, a sports anchor for FOX CT.
Coppola (pictured) will be returning to New Haven to live-broadcast the Greater New Haven St. Patrick’s Day Parade on March 13. At a press conference Friday in City Hall, parade organizers announced they failed to come to an agreement with WTNH to extend a four-year arrangement allowing Channel 8 exclusive rights to live-televise the show. After negotiations hit a impasse, they signed an exclusive agreement with FOX instead.
The parade is set to start 1 p.m. at Sherman Avenue and Chapel Street, and end at 3 p.m. just past the Green at Church and Grove. Parade spokeswoman Brittney Lipsett said she expects 3,000 marchers to participate in “one of the North East’s largest events.”
Drinking on the street will be banned, as it was last year, said city Chief Administrative Officer Rob Smuts.
“We will be aggressively enforcing open container and all other rules,” Smuts warned.
For the past few years, the city has been charging the volunteer-run parade for police overtime costs. The bill this year is $30,000, said organizer Kevin Smith. A series of events are planned to raise a total of $100,000 to put on the parade.