Denver police begin enforcement for Cinco de Mayo celebrations this weekend

The City of Denver is getting ready for a weekend filled with Cinco de Mayo celebrations. Police in Denver have started putting in place lane reductions along Federal Boulevard.

As in recent years, the plans include reducing Federal Boulevard to one lane in each direction from 6th Avenue to West Evans Avenue.

Officers said this is the best way to allow first responders to get through a busy stretch of road. Typically Federal Boulevard is filled with cruisers who are celebrating Cinco de Mayo. Police said they will continue to enforce sound ordinance violations and the juvenile curfew.

Police also talked about crowds in downtown Denver along the Cinco de Mayo Parade route, which kicks off three blocks west of the City & County Building at 11 a.m. on Saturday and winds through downtown Denver to end at Civic Center Park, the site of the Cinco de Mayo Festival.

"Just have safety in mind. There's going to be a lot of extra foot traffic, a lot of extra pedestrian traffic, so when you're showing up on Federal Boulevard for the Cinco de Mayo festival, just be mindful of that," said Denver Police Dist. 4 Cmdr. Brad Qualley.

The Cinco de Mayo festival includes three stages of music and dancing, in addition to food and vendor booths at Civic Center Park all weekend to celebrate the spirit of Mexican culture. There are several other events scheduled for the Cinco de Mayo weekend with details on the Visit Denver website .