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COLUMBUS, OH – Columbus, Ohio holds one of the largest Pride parades and festivals throughout the Midwest every year. And lo and behold, it’s now got even bigger. Local LGBTQ organizations are now planning for this year’s Pride parade to be among the largest in the country.

“I just found out today we are trending on Orbitz,” said Stonewall Columbus Director AJ Casey. “We are one of the top seven Pride destinations in the country and that pus us even ahead of San Francisco for pride destinations.”

Columbus Pride Will Bring Out Thousands of Ohioans

As it stands right over 13,000 people are gearing up to participate in this year’s parade. That will exceed the previous year’s tally by over 5,000 people. This information comes courtesy of Stonewall Columbus.

According to Stonewall Columbus Director AJ Casey the city is getting ready for the largest parade and festival in Columbus Pride history. Consequently, organizers are partnering with the Columbus Division of Police so they festival-goers can feel safe and secure for all the festivities.

“There will be a very large law enforcement presence throughout the city. We have increased patrols, we’ve increased different officers presence in different areas to ensure everyone remains safe,” said Columbus Police Officer Lt. Nick Konves.

Officials indicated that last years text alert system was a success for Columbus police. Therefore, they are going to continue to implement it going forward.

If festival-goers want to get safety information throughout the event, they can just text “PRIDE” to 888-777. Police will supply any pertinent safety information. The alerts will be in effect the entire weekend.

The festival starts on Friday and will close at Saturday at Bicentennial and Genoa Park. It will be one of the largest events of the year in Columbus, so make sure to adjust your plans accordingly. Of course, it will definitely cause the traffic to be a lot worse than it otherwise would have been.