Knox St. Patrick’s Day Parade returns to downtown Knoxville on Friday night, March 17, 2023, for the first time in three years. 

The parade steps off from the eastbound lanes of Howard Baker Jr. Avenue at 6:55 p.m. Friday before heading west on Church Avenue, turning right onto northbound Gay Street and ending at Gay and Magnolia Avenue.

The parade will require the closure of the eastbound lanes of Howard Baker Jr. Avenue, beginning at 5 p.m. (Westbound Howard Baker will remain open.) Gay Street will close at 6:30 p.m. Streets will reopen by 8:30 p.m.

In addition, temporary no-parking zones will be in place, starting at noon Friday. Vehicles parked in a no-parking zone will be towed.

Temporary no-parking zones include:

• Gay Street between Cumberland and Magnolia avenues, including the 100 block of Gay and the Gay Street Viaduct over the Old City railroad tracks

• Church Avenue, between Gay Street and Hall of Fame Drive

• Market Street, between Union and Clinch avenues

• Union Avenue, between Walnut and Gay streets

• Eastbound lanes of Howard Baker, between Hall of Fame and Hill Avenue

The 2020 and 2021 Knox St. Patrick’s Day parades were cancelled due to COVID-19 safety protocols. Then a late winter snowfall forced the cancellation of the 2022 parade. Friday’s event will be held rain or shine. 

Looking for free parking? Remember that parking in City-owned garages is free after 6 p.m. weeknights and all day on Saturdays and Sundays.

Visit www.KnoxStPatricksParade.com for more details. Proceeds support Catholic Charities of East Tennessee.

In other St. Patrick’s Day fun, be on the lookout for green decorative lighting around downtown and on the Krutch Park waterfall this week. 

Meanwhile, the Knox Shamrock Fest will be held from 1-5 p.m. Sunday, March 19, at World’s Fair Park, and the Lucky Kidney Run will be at 3 p.m. Both the Knox Shamrock Fest and the Lucky Kidney Run will be raising money for the East Tennessee Kidney Foundation.