The Big Orange won’t rise this year in Miami for the first time in more than 3 decades
This one hurts.
The beloved local New Year’s Eve event, The Big Orange countdown, is canceled due to the pandemic.
For the last 34 years, the giant orange has famously risen to the top of the InterContinental Miami hotel as the seconds tick toward midnight and people cheer below.
But the neon guy in sunglasses won’t be ringing in 2021, the city of Miami, the organizer of the annual Times Square-esque event, confirmed to the Miami Herald on Wednesday.
Stephanie Severino, a city spokeswoman, says zilch will be happening at the site on Thursday night, nor will any messages be displayed on the digital canvas.
Event coordinator Corky Dozier says she would have loved to have lit up a massive message thanking first responders for their help during these challenging months, but that won’t happen, either.
“No fireworks, nothing, not this year, which would have been our 35th anniversary,” a disappointed Dozier said. “The orange even went up even after 9/11, but we just can’t take the chance.”
Pitbull even got in on the action to celebrate our entrance into 2017, performing a concert at adjacent Bayfront Park up until last year.
Hopefully next year, we will all be able to enjoy the 2,000 pound, 35-foot high iconic orange with its 2,000 LED lights, created by industrial artist Steve Carpenter.
Whatever down-scaled celebration you partake in, remember that Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava extended the New Year’s Eve curfew to 1 a.m.
In an announcement on social media, the county mayor said that after that hour revelers must “disperse.”
“We need to make sure we [keep] our residents safe,” she said. “We need the community to follow all the steps,” including wearing a mask, spending time outdoors and washing your hands frequently.
“We will adapt so Miami can continue to thrive,” the mayor concluded her message.
This story was originally published December 30, 2020 at 11:48 AM with the headline "The Big Orange won’t rise this year in Miami for the first time in more than 3 decades."
