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Fairfax City will celebrate Independence Day on Friday, July 4, with a downtown parade, family activities, live music and an evening fireworks display.
This year’s theme is “Freedom, Flip Flops and Fireworks.” The parade will run from 10 a.m. to noon, rain or shine, beginning at 4100 Chain Bridge Road. It will follow Chain Bridge Road, Main Street and University Drive before reaching the reviewing stand on Armstrong Street.
Billed as Virginia’s largest Independence Day parade, the procession will open with a flyover by replica World War II-era aircraft from The Flying Circus.
The lineup includes floats, giant balloons, bands, superheroes, dancers, first responders, princesses, color guards, antique vehicles, cultural performers, martial artists, clowns, Kena Shriners and Scout groups.
Local participants will include the Fairfax High and Woodson High marching bands, the City of Fairfax Theater Company, political dignitaries, the Fairfax High Alumni Kazoo Band, the Fairfax Jubil-Aires and the City of Fairfax Regional Library Precision Book Cart Drill Team.
Family activities continue after the parade
Future Fire Fighters Day will take place from noon to 2 p.m. at Fire Station 3, 4081 University Drive. Families may participate in children’s activities, learn about fire safety, explore fire engines and let children try handling a real fire hose.
The Ratcliffe-Allison-Pozer House, 10386 Main St., will offer free tours from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Fairfax Museum and Visitor Center, 10209 Main St., will celebrate its 33rd birthday with cupcakes and lemonade on its front lawn from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Inside, visitors may view the traveling exhibit “WWII: Voices of Service,” along with children’s activities and information about Fairfax’s World War II heroes.
Music and fireworks take over Fairfax High
The evening celebration will run from 6:30 to 10 p.m. at Fairfax High School’s football stadium, 3501 Lion Run.
Downrange, a U.S. Army band, will perform from 6:30 to 8 p.m. Welcoming remarks and the parade awards ceremony will follow from 8 to 8:30 p.m., with the Vienna-Falls Chorus singing the national anthem.
Downrange will return from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m. Fireworks are scheduled for 9:30 to 9:45 p.m., followed by another Downrange performance lasting until 10:30 p.m.
Food available for purchase will include barbecue, corn on the cob, pizza, lobster rolls, kebabs, empanadas, Asian dishes, funnel cakes, kettle corn, ice cream, Italian ice, cotton candy and cookies.
All bags and coolers will be inspected before entry. Checks begin at 5:30 p.m. and continue through the event. Pets other than service animals are prohibited, as are alcohol, personal fireworks, weapons and smoking.
If rain postpones the fireworks, the display will move to July 5 at 9:30 p.m. There would be no concert or shuttle service that night, but the Fairfax High parking lot would be available for spectators.
Parking, shuttles and road closures
Because downtown parking and access will be limited during the parade, attendees are encouraged to use free shuttles operating from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m. Pickup locations are George Mason University’s Rappahannock River Parking Deck, 4395 University Drive; Woodson High School, 9525 Main St.; and Fairfax United Methodist Church, 10300 Stratford Ave. All shuttle buses are ADA-accessible.
Free, secure parking for bicycles, scooters, strollers and similar wheeled equipment will be available from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at University Drive and Armstrong Street.
Parking at Fairfax High, including accessible spaces, will be limited for the evening program. Free ADA-compliant shuttles will begin running from Woodson High to Fairfax High at 5:30 p.m. Return service will continue after the fireworks until 11:30 p.m.
Lion Run will close to traffic from 4 to 11 p.m. Blenheim Boulevard will prohibit through traffic from approximately 9:15 to 9:45 p.m.