ST PAUL, Minn. — It didn't matter where you looked Saturday in St. Paul, everyone was wearing green. Thousands came to Seventh Avenue to celebrate St. Patrick's Day – or at least the day before.
"Lot of people," one man said.
"Every year it gets bigger and better," another added.
At Grand 7, the line was out the door and the beer was flowing. It's a huge day for businesses in the area.
"Everyone knows in St. Paul, all the businesses, like March is their month, right?" Deanne Smallman with the bar said. "Any bars, not just Grand 7, just, this is our time to shine."
It wasn't hard to find patrons – every bar and business open had lines out the door. Some even bought a hotel room to beat the crowds.
"We got the hotel explicitly for this and it's been a good time," one man said.
It's a big difference from last year when winter felt like winter.
"I remember just hanging out in front of McGovern's, just absolutely frozen," said Jack Sipel.
"St. Patty's celebration, it's been good," another added. "Weather is better than last year, yeah, last year was negative."
With good weather comes good business. It's another win for the area after last week's state hockey tournament.
"It's a great city, I mean my god it's been through a lot and they've done a lot to make it better and I think it's going in the right way," one man, who called himself John, said.
So yes, technically Saturday wasn't St. Patrick's Day. But anyone out in the area will tell you – that didn't matter at all.
"We're diehard St. Patty's fans, right?" Smallman said.
"To have St. Patrick's Day around here at the same time, you couldn't ask for anything better than that," Sipel said.
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