Some residents were disappointed after they discovered the best spots for the Liberation Day Parade were taken already by parade sponsors.
The area along the parade route on Marine Corps Drive from Chamorro Village to the GCIC building in Hag?t?a was reserved for parade vendors and sponsors well before residents were able to apply for spots yesterday morning.
Although some camped out days prior to the permitting, some residents felt it was all for naught.
"If we knew it was going to be like this, we would have not even registered for a spot," Lina Salonga said as she waited in line near the Paseo Stadium yesterday. "We have done this for over 10 years and this is the first time we have ever encountered a problem like this."
Salonga's family camped out on the shore across the street from the Paseo Stadium since Tuesday morning waiting for the permits to be issued, but now she feels it was all a waste of time.
Salonga was the fifth person in line and was unable to get a good spot for the parade. Instead, she was issued a lot where her family will be unable to set up a canopy because it has a tree in the middle of it.
"We cannot set up a canopy, the lots are smaller, and we had no choice but to resort to a beachside lot," she said. "The spot we have been reserving for over 10 years has be pre-reserved."
Salonga said since the death of her cousin, Army Sgt. Joshua Lukeala, her family has put up banners every year in commemoration of the fallen soldier, but this year they don't know if they will be able to do so.
Lukeala was killed on June 7, 2010, in Afghanistan while supporting Operation Enduring Freedom. Lukeala's death at age 23 marked the first Yigo casualty in the war against terror.
"We raise the banner and military troops in the parade would stop and salute the family," she said.
Salonga's family was counting on her to secure the lot in front of the GCIC building as she had done in past years, but now she doesn't know what to do or how to tell her family she couldn't reserve it.
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"The hardest part is explaining to my uncle that we cannot run the banner in memory of his Joshua, for the troops to salute," she said.
Mayor Jessy Gogue, Liberation Parade Committee chairman, said the Department of Parks and Recreation worked with the Department of Public Works to survey and mark off the parade lots in order to better regulate the trash cleanup after the parade.
"We don't want to take any chances this year, so the entire parade route is marked off, so we know who to hold accountable for debris left behind," Gogue said.
Every year government agencies are faced with "dump truck loads" of trash that is left behind from the parade, he said.
They mayor said residents can exchange or move their parade lots if a location is unsuitable for their needs.
Decrease in patrons
Parks and Recreation Director Joseph Mendiola said there has been a decrease from previous years in people purchasing parade lots.
"We have extended the parade route, adding 200 lots on both sides of the road, and we still have 100 lots available," Mendiola said.
About 400 parade lots were surveyed by Parks and Rec, expanding the route from KFC in Hag?t?a to Adelup.
Source: http://www.guampdn.com/article/20120714/NEWS01/207140302/1002/NEWS01
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