A recommendation to provide $30,000 for the 2001 Hero Parade will be considered at tomorrow’s meeting of Auckland City Council’s City Attractions Committee.

The parade returns to Ponsonby next February following a one-year absence. Event organisers anticipate a crowd of more than 200,000 people, including some overseas visitors, and an estimated television audience of 600,000.

Chairperson of the Committee, Councillor Victoria Carter, says although the events budget is under considerable pressure, the Hero Parade is significant and deserves consideration for Council support.

“There’s no doubt that the Hero Parade is a major event for Auckland. It generates a colourful, carnival atmosphere and celebrates the city’s diversity in a unique way,” she says.

“It’s also one of the Council’s long-term strategies for the city to support groups that reflect Auckland’s communities, cultures and lifestyles and to hold successful events such as Hero.”

The total budget for staging the event is $227,000, much of which is spent on crowd control, road closures, parade route barriers and post-event street cleaning.

The Hero Parade received $15,000 in sponsorship from Auckland City when it was last staged in 1999.

The City Attractions Committee meets tomorrow (Wednesday, August 16) at 9.30am on level 15 of the Civic Administration Building, 1 Greys Avenue.

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