City details what went into making a successful parade

Courtesy City of Kansas City.

City departments disposed of more than 14,000 pounds of trash following the record-breaking Kansas City Royals World Series parade this week.

The city has issued a report on the celebration being called the largest in Kansas City history. An estimated 800,000 fans turned out for a parade through downtown and a rally at Union Station on Tuesday.

Sponsors and supporters contributed $300,000 for things like rental of barricades, the sound system, stage and big screens. The city expects to pay $50,000 in overtime and clean-up costs, which were minimized because the event happened on a weekday during the work day.

“Kansas City is bursting with success, innovation and achievement,” said City Manager Troy Schulte in a news release. “We take great pride in all of the work that our employees do each day to make this City great. The support and attendance that our residents showed during the Royal Celebration event was absolutely phenomenal. We hope to continue to share this spirit for our world-winning City throughout the year.”

Here are more details the city has provided about what went on behind the parade:

• Public works, Water Services and Parks & Recreation Departments collectively disposed of more than 14,000 pounds of trash following the parade and rally
• Kansas City Water Services’ street sweepers cleaned 91 gutter miles and disposed of more than 5 tons of debris
• Kansas City Police Department enlisted 400 officers to work the parade, and made only 3 arrests
• Kansas City Fire Department responded to 119 calls for emergency medical services and, with assistance from Fire/EMS mutual aid partners, transported 53 patients to area hospital.

Other facts provided by the city:

• 26,012 feet of barricade protected residents along the parade route
• 220 trash bins lined the parade route
• 16 confetti cannons showered fans with more than 400 pounds of confetti
• Residents engaged with city social media outlets in record numbers, tripling twitter interactions and generating seven-times the City’s typical Facebook reach.
• More than 100  “Home Sweet Home” limited-edition street banners adorned city streets

By the way, those commemorative “Home Sweet Home” street banners are still available for purchase, with proceeds benefiting the City of Fountains Foundation, which works to repair and restore Kansas City’s historic fountains. Fans may purchase the limited-edition commemorative banners for $25 by visiting kcmo.gov/store.