FLAGS DEPLOYED EARLY

Flags honor veterans at popular Eastlake venue

“With everything going on because of the virus, we wanted to show patriotism for our state and country.”

—Eastlake Mayor Dennis Morley

Conditions were ideal for a patriotic tour de force April 9 at the Boulevard of 500 Flags in Eastlake.

With the sun shining and a west wind gusting upwards of 20 miles-per-hour, the rows of red, white and blue U.S. flags were framed against a mostly cloudless sky painted deep blue.

Installed at Eastlake City Hall since 1996 as a tribute to residents who served in the Armed Forces, the Boulevard of 500 Flags annually attracts thousands of visitors who also are drawn by the adjacent memorial to the Sept. 11, 2001,

terrorist attacks.

Eastlake Mayor Dennis Morley said the committee that oversees the Boulevard of 500 Flags generally does not deploy the flags on poles until the middle of May, in advance of Memorial Day.

This year, Morley explained, he and the committee decided to deploy in late March, after Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine issued a statewide stay-at-home order and enacted other measures to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus.

“With everything going on because of the virus, we wanted to show patriotism for our state and country,” Morley said.

DAVID S. GLASIER — THE NEWS-HERALD Flags are waving earlier than usual at the Boulevard of 500Flags in Eastlake.