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Riverfest Prep And Squatter's Rights

Ann Thompson
/
WVXU
Days ahead of Riverfest people placed tarps to mark their spot between I-471 and Newport On The Levee.

Days before this year's Western & Southern/WEBN Fireworks people were marking their spots. Four tarps were taped to the grass in Newport on a hill facing the Purple People Bridge.

Friday and Saturday boats start lining up for the event and early Sunday people will lay their blankets out on the Serpentine Wall in Cincinnati.

Typically 500,000 people come to watch the fireworks Sunday night, so workers on both sides of the Ohio River were busy setting up.

Credit Ann Thompson / WVXU
/
WVXU
On Thursday workers were putting up booths and tents on the Newport side of the river in preparation for Sunday's Riverfest.

Cold Iron Event Rental's Marc Wertheim supervised the construction of 40 booths and a giant 40' x 200' tent in Newport. He says, "You have to be ready for such a large crowd in a short time frame so it requires lots of locations to be able to serve people in a timely fashion."

At Yeatman's Cove, Cincinnati Parks Department employee Lamont Hill was setting up a stage and enjoying the calm before the storm. "It's empty, nice and clean, beautiful right now, but come Sunday night, late night, it's going to look like a tornado's been down here." 

Here is the Cincinnati entertainment schedule.

Rules and Regulations/Parking:

Cincinnati

Covington

Newport

Bellevue

Ann Thompson has decades of journalism experience in the Greater Cincinnati market and brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to her reporting.