The float honors Barton Malow’s history and heritage as the construction enterprise prepares to celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2024.
To coincide with its 100th anniversary in 2024, Barton Malow will debut a float in the 97th America’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in Detroit on Thursday, November 23. Barton Malow’s float is one of only three new float entries for this year’s parade and was formally unveiled to the public during the annual Pancake Breakfast at The Parade Company on Friday, November 3.
“It’s an exciting time to be at Barton Malow as we get ready to kick off our centennial celebration,” says Barton Malow President + CEO Ryan Maibach. “Part of this celebration is honoring our history and heritage while looking ahead to our future. The float represents the diverse project portfolio of work that we perform across North America and the tremendous accomplishments of our 3,500+ team members.”
Dubbed “Building Today for a Better Tomorrow,” the float will make its debut down Woodward Avenue on Thanksgiving morning, passing Barton Malow’s original headquarters and many buildings the enterprise has had a role in constructing, including Little Caesars Arena, Shinola Hotel, and the forthcoming Hudson’s Site Development project. The float also features other iconic local and national Barton Malow projects, including the Detroit Post Office, Pittsburgh Children’s Hospital, Camden Yards (home of the Baltimore Orioles), Ultium Cells, and the Daytona International Speedway.
Designed and built by The Parade Company artists, “Building Today for a Better Tomorrow” is over 100 feet long and the highest point is 28 feet tall. At the front of the float is a replica of the original 1924 C.O. Barton Concrete stamp, used on some of the first projects that Barton Malow built in Detroit. On the float is a cement truck that spins and is approximately one-third the size of a real cement truck. The float features enough hand-sculpted and painted bricks to cover a 1,500-square-foot home. It also features race flags spinning in circles, signaling an exciting race finish at the Daytona International Speedway.
The back of the float showcases Barton Malow’s industry-transforming technology, LIFTbuild, which was recently used to complete the Exchange Building in Greektown. The entire building will tip backward to go under the People Mover on Parade Day.
Voted as America’s Number One Holiday Parade by USA TODAY, America’s Thanksgiving Parade® presented by Gardner White takes place on Thursday, November 23. This year’s Parade theme is “A Heart of History.” Learn more at www.theparade.org. The float will also take part in the 2024 and 2025 parades.
