A Message from Mayor Stimpson - February 2
Feb 2nd, 2021
Good evening,
It is 7:30 p.m. on Tuesday, February 2, and I am writing to give you an update from the City of Mobile.
Today, the Mobile County Health Department reports 33,442 COVID-19 cases, an increase of 160 cases. To review the most recent detailed report, click here.
There are still some upcoming first-dose, drive-thru vaccination events happening in Mobile County in the coming days. You can find more about those and other information about COVID-19 vaccines on the City of Mobile’s website. We have created this page dedicated to COVID-19 vaccine information and will be updating it regularly with new information about vaccine availability and upcoming clinics.
Today, we spoke with representatives from several local marching and parading organizations, and our team released information about what Fat Tuesday will look like in Downtown Mobile this year. Beginning tomorrow, February 3, you and your family will be able to capture some of the Mardi Gras spirit at Mardi Gras Park through the City of Mobile’s very own "Yardi Gras” display.
During the 2020 holiday season, Bellingrath Gardens and Home incorporated a fantastic Mardi Gras display as part of its Magic Christmas in Lights show. Working with the City of Mobile and Mobile Mask Editor Steve Joynt, Bellingrath has agreed to move this display to Mardi Gras Park through the Carnival Season. It will include more than a dozen Mardi Gras light displays that will be free to the public.
Even though there will not be parades this year, the City of Mobile will be closing streets in the entertainment district of Downtown Mobile for celebrations on Fat Tuesday. On Tuesday, February 16, 2021, Dauphin Street will be closed from S. Washington Avenue to Royal Street as will all through streets that run between Dauphin Street and St. Francis/Government streets in this same area.
You can see a full map of the planned road closures below:
COVID-19 may have changed our plans, but it won’t shake our Mardi Gras spirit.
We know that Mardi Gras is an important holiday and Mobilians may want to come downtown. Closing these streets will allow more space for social distancing in open, outdoor spaces. Government Street will also be closed near Mardi Gras Park.
In addition to the Mardi Gras Tree and the display set up by Bellingrath Gardens, the City of Mobile has worked with several parading organizations that want to display their emblem floats or other floats representing their organizations around Mardi Gras Park on the day of Fat Tuesday.
I’d like to close this evening by thanking the people who’ve helped us keep the Mardi Gras spirit alive this year. I often talk about what we as individuals can contribute to our community, and we have seen so much of that over the past several weeks.
From the hundreds of families participating in “Porch Parades” and “Yardi Gras,” to the organizations that are willing to share their Carnival floats and decorations, it’s been wonderful to see so many come together to ensure the good times roll this year while still abiding by the recommendations of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Sleep tight,