One of Anaheim's most fun events, the Black History Parade & Unity Festival, returns to downtown Anaheim this Saturday!

The parade and street fair feature a procession of marching bands, dancers and parade vehicles as well as music, food and more!

The event, put on by the Orange County Heritage Council and now in its 44th year, celebrates Black History Month and the contributions of African Americans to our city, region and nation.

Everyone is welcome! 

• What: Orange County Black History Parade & Unity Festival
• When: Saturday, Feb. 3
• Time: 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Parade: 10 a.m.
• Unity Festival: noon
• Parking: City Hall, Center Street parking structures
• Cost: Free! Food and crafts for purchase

Parking is available at structures around City Hall (see map below). Note that the main City Hall structure will be available but impacted at times by closures on Broadway.

A good option is the red brick parking structure along East Center Street.

If you're not joining us, plan on avoiding the downtown area on Saturday for your convenience. See below on what to know for road closures.

Everyone is welcome for an always awesome time at the Black History Parade & Unity Festival this Saturday in downtown Anaheim.

But if you can't join us, it's best to avoid the area for your own convenience.

Here's all you need to know about street closures on Saturday.

Center Street Promenade

Center Street Promenade and adjoining Clementine and Lemon streets close early Saturday morning by 8 a.m. Center Street Promenade streets reopen around 6 p.m.

Lincoln Avenue

Closed from Clementine Street to Anaheim Boulevard starting at 8 a.m., reopening by noon.

Anaheim Boulevard

Closed from Lincoln Avenue to Water Street starting at 9 a.m., reopening by noon.

Broadway

Closed from Olive Street to Lemon Street staring at 9 a.m., reopening by noon. 

Santa Ana Street, others

Santa Ana Street, Water Street and others intersecting with Anaheim Boulevard close at or near the intersections starting at 9 a.m., reopening by noon.

Pearson Park

Lemon Street and Cypress Street close starting at 6:45 a.m., reopening around 11:30 a.m.

Alternate routes

Consider Harbor Boulevard and East Street as north-south alternatives around the parade route.

For east-west travel, use La Palma Avenue or South Street, Vermont Avenue or Ball Road.

New year, new gear!

We're excited to see the kids and teens in our community enjoying new play areas.

The Peter Marshall community in west Anaheim recently celebrated the opening of two playgrounds.

The playgrounds were designed by neighborhood kids and feature swings, slides, rock climbing walls, bridges, sensory walls and even a zip line!



This is the second Anaheim playground sponsored by the Anaheim Ducks Foundation in partnership with Kaboom!

Anaheim Ducks mascot Wild Wing joined us for a recent play date with the kids!

The playgrounds together are the 16th Anaheim has built with Kaboom! Peter Marshall Park is at 801 N. Magnolia Ave.

A new teen center is open at the Brookhurst Community Center.

The Project S.A.Y. Teen Center has a pool table, foosball, ping-pong, a flat-screen TV and video games.

Project S.A.Y. is a youth support and leadership development program for junior high and high school students.

Along with all the fun, the teen center plays an important role with homework help and wellness, all while providing a safe, inviting place for teens to hang.

This is the sixth teen center across our city.

Brookhurst is a great example of what we have to offer our residents, serving as a community center, teen center, senior center and a park with a skate park, stadium and an awesome moonscape playground!

Brookhurst Community Center is at 2271 W. Crescent Ave.

For more on upcoming park improvements visit Anaheim.net/ParkProjects.

Strategic Plan Anaheim is our initiative to chart community priorities and guiding principles on behalf of residents, businesses and visitors in the years to come.

On Saturday, Feb. 10, our City Council is hosting a special strategic plan workshop to learn where we are at, to hear from the community and to move our efforts forward.

This is a daylong workshop that will help us advance Strategic Plan Anaheim.

We'll hear ideas and feedback. But, unlike a regular Council meeting, there won't be formal votes and actions taken in what will be more of a conference-style workshop session.

Here are details:

• What: Strategic Plan Anaheim City Council workshop
• Day: Saturday, Feb. 10
• Time: 9 a.m.-4 p.m.
• Where: Anaheim Convention Center
• Who: open to the public
• Parking: free parking off Katella Avenue

A strategic plan is a high-level document that sets priorities for our City Council as they consider policy decisions and for city departments in our daily and long-term work.

You can learn more at Anaheim.net/strategicplan.

Keep the spark of love out of our power lines

Valentine's Day is a day of chocolates, cards, flowers and ... balloons.

Those heart-shaped balloons are a loving gesture. But help us keep the power on at your home by keeping those balloons securely grounded.

Mylar balloons are a frequent cause of power outages in our neighborhoods. And we all know how frustrating power outages can be.

Anaheim Public Utilities provides highly reliable electrical service to our city. But keeping balloons out of power lines takes all of us.

Mylar balloons, like those red Valentine's hearts, are metallic.

When they get caught in power lines, they disrupt the flow of power, causing a short circuit and an outage.

You can report and look up power outages online at Anaheim.net/outage.

We'll always work to restore service as soon as possible. But prevention is the best option.

If you are celebrating Valentine's Day with balloons, here are some tips:

• Keep metallic balloons indoors if possible
• If outdoors, make sure balloons are securely tied or anchored by a weight
• Before disposing of balloons, deflate them while still tethered and weighted

And there's another reason to keep balloons grounded. Runaway balloons are bad for our environment, including for land and sea animals that may encounter them.

Thanks for doing your part and happy Valentine's Day!