Parking, shuttle options for Red Poppy Festival

The City of Georgetown is offering a variety of options for visitors to get to the 20th annual Red Poppy Festival this weekend. The City’s signature event on the most beautiful town square in Texas kicks off Friday, April 26, at 6 p.m.

Several free public parking lots are available throughout downtown, as well as shuttle and ridesharing options.

“It looks like the weather is going to be perfect. We are expecting record-setting crowds throughout the weekend,” Tourism Manager Cari Miller said. “Folks need to plan to arrive early, be patient, and be prepared to be amongst thousands of people, especially on Saturday night.”

“Georgetown may be a small town, but this is going to be a big party,” Miller added. “No doubt about it, there’s going to be some traffic, but where else can you go see Pat Green for free?”

Event parking

The Williamson County parking garage at Rock and Fourth streets and the public parking lot on Austin Avenue between Fifth and Fourth streets (next to The Monument Cafe) will be open during the festival. Public parking lots on Martin Luther King Jr. Street at West Eighth and West Sixth streets are also available. There is no charge for parking.

Attendees are asked to be courteous when parking on neighborhood streets, and avoid blocking driveways or parking in fire lanes. Illegally parked vehicles will be ticketed.

Handicap parking is available at the parking lot at 10th and Main streets.

The City parking lot at Sixth and Main streets will be closed starting at 5 p.m. on Thursday, April 25.

Free shuttles on Saturday

Two free shuttles will run Saturday, April 27, from 9 a.m. to midnight. The shuttle will pick up and drop off passengers at the First Baptist Church located at 1333 W. University Ave. and East View High School at 4490 E. University Ave. The drop-off location is at the corner of Austin Avenue and Ninth Street.

Uber/Lyft

There will also be a designated Uber/Lyft pick-up/drop-off point located 406 W. 8th St. near the Georgetown Public Library. Rides must be requested through the ridesharing apps.

Street closures

Austin Avenue closes Friday morning: Starting at 6 a.m. on Friday, April 26, Austin Avenue will be closed from Sixth to Ninth streets. Traffic will be detoured to Rock Street. (This is to allow the placement of the main festival stage.) Austin Avenue will be closed through Sunday at 11 p.m.

Other streets around the Courthouse Square will close at 6 a.m. on Friday, April 26, to allow for vendor set-up. Streets around the Square will remain closed through Sunday at 11 p.m. An expanded street closure area will be in effect on Saturday from 6 a.m. to 12 p.m. (noon) for the Red Poppy Parade. To see the parade route, go to redpoppyfestival.com/things-to-do/parade. Detailed street closure information can be found at redpoppyfestival.com/parking.

For more a complete schedule and more details, visit RedPoppyFestival.com.