ROCHESTER, N.Y. — The Rochester area is celebrating Irish culture this weekend with its annual parade in downtown Rochester, a five-mile race, and other events ahead of St. Patrick’s Day.

As always, crews “painted the green”, adding a stripe of green to the parade route on East Avenue before thousands come out to downtown Rochester. Here is your guide:

Rochester St. Patrick’s Day Parade (Saturday, March 15)

The Rochester St. Patrick’s Day Parade will return to downtown Rochester on Saturday with Irish dancers, bands, and people dressed in Irish-themed costumes.

This year’s parade will honor Irish immigrants who helped to build the Erie Canal. Monroe County Executive Adam Bello said he hopes to bring in floats depicting the building of the canal.

The parade kicks off at 12:30 p.m. on East Avenue and Alexander Street and participants will line up an hour before. The parade will go down East Avenue, turn left on Main Street, and end at the corner of Fitzhugh Street. Street parking is prohibited on the parade route but these parking garages are free on parade day:

• Mortimer Street
• Sister Cities
• High Falls Garage
• Washington Square Garage till 4 p.m.
• South Ave Garage till 4 p.m.
• Court St Garage till 4 p.m.
• East End is free till 4 p.m.

News10NBC will have live coverage of the parade starting at noon. You can watch it on our YouTube channel or livestream page on our website. You can also watch it on your smart TV — such as Roku Channel, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, Google TV, and Android TV — by downloading the News10+ app.

Several community members will be honored at the parade, including Primetime 585 founders Karen and Gerard Iglesia and Rochester Police Department veteran and ultra-marathon runner Brett Sobieraski. You can see the complete parade lineup here:

Runnin’ of the Green (Saturday, March 15)

The YMCA of Greater Rochester is hosting its annual five-mile race on Saturday morning to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day.

The Runnin’ of the Green starts at 9:30 a.m. on Main Street next to Parcel 5 and goes out and back on Main Street. You can register for the race and see a full map here.

Runners can pick up their packets at the Rochester Running Co. on Mount Hope Avenue on Wednesday through Friday or at the race site on race day. The closest parking garages to the race site are the Mortimer Street Garage, South Ave Garage, and Civic Center Garage.

Rochester Amerks Irish Night (Friday, March 14)

The Rochester Amerks will celebrate Irish heritage when they take on the Providence Bruins on Friday night at the Blue Cross Arena.

It’s in partnership with Rohrbach Brewing Company and will feature special giveaways. There will also be a pregame happy hour in the area with specialty drinks and live music. The puck drops at 7:05 p.m. and you can get tickets here.