Busy day in Orlando: Puerto Rican Parade, Magic Playoff impact downtown traffic

Geovany Dias,Brittany Caldwell
·2 min read

It is one of the state’s biggest celebrations of Puerto Rican pride.

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Thousands of boricuas will be hitting the streets of downtown Orlando.

The event will also celebrate the municipality of Juncos, nicknamed “La Ciudad del Valenciano,” Spanish for “the Valencian city.”

The city is known not only for its famous sports scene – but also for being a major business hub.

Read: Watch the Florida Puerto Rican Parade on Channel 9

“People think this is tourism, all this type of thing is manufacturing,” said Fernando Rivera, director of the Puerto Rico Research Hub. “And a lot of manufacturing in home goods, you know, pharmaceuticals, machinery, electrical supplies.”

As we inch closer to election season, parade organizers have also emphasized the importance of the Latino vote and civic engagement as part of the celebrations.

As many as 25,000 people joined the fun last year, and organizers expect twice as many parade-goers to attend this year.

Read: Magic look to pick up where they left off for game 4

This year’s parade theme is “Civic Engagement and Responsibilities.”

The parade route will begin at Robinson Street and Rosalind Avenue.

Participants will march past Lake Eola Park, cross Central Boulevard, head up Orange Avenue and end at Livingston Street.

Read: Hope Community Center helps engagement with Central Florida’s Puerto Rican community

And it will be a busy day downtown with the Orlando Magic taking on the Cleveland Cavaliers for Game 4 of the playoffs series, starting at 1 p.m. at the Kia Center.

Magic fans hope to even the series for their first playoff series in five years, so be prepared for big crowds and heavy traffic.

And if you can’t make it to downtown Orlando today, join Eyewitness News This Morning’s Kirstin Delgado and Alexa Lorenzo for live coverage of the parade at 11 a.m. on Channel 9.

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