It's official -- the 2010 Mummers parade will go on. Well, unless Mother Nature decides not to cooperate.
Parade organizers and the city announced Wednesday that a long-term contract has been signed over event costs and commitments.
"There will be a Mummers parade," Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter said at a press conference. He called the announcement "the worst kept secret in Philadelphia."
Both sideshad been negotiating over how much the Mummers would have to pay
the city for services like police and sanitation.
The city originally set contributions at $300,000, but eventually dropped the asking price to $140,000.
Of that, the Mummers are only actually paying the city $40,000 with the other $100,000 coming from monies raised by U.S. Rep. Bob Brady and Councilmen DiCicco and Kenney.
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Mummer reps thanked the mayor and his staff for working out the deal.
"It's been difficult and we all know that it wasn't Mayor Nutter's doing that the world economy pretty much collapsed over the next year," Mummers attorney George Badey said. "He's done the best he's could under very difficult circumstances."
The Mummers are set to strut 8:30 a.m. on Friday. Now, the only thing standing in its way is the weather.
Rain or snow could postpone the parade until Saturday or Sunday.
