Chicago Prepares For An Unseasonably Warm St. Patrick's Day
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Talk about the luck of the Irish: Chicago could be in for record-breaking temperatures on St. Patrick's Day -- in the high-70s.
Tom Piazza of McGee's Tavern in the DePaul neighborhood says the timing couldn't be better: March Madness, warm weather and St. Patrick's Day falling on a Saturday.
"It's just a perfect storm," Piazza tells CBS 2's Roseanne Tellez. "In 25 years of doing this, I've never seen weather like this."
McGee's had stocked up on kegs of green beer and cases of Jameson's Irish whiskey.
Meanwhile, butchers were slicing the corned beef and taverns were stocking the green beer and Jameson's Irish whiskey.
Some local business owners are worried about crowds and liquor.
"We've already had broken windows," says Jeanine Ruffolo, owner of Jam-n-Honey, which will be serving novel green pancakes.
At Gepperth's Market, it's the corned beef that's selling like hotcakes.
Otto Demke says the shop usually sells between 400 and 500 pounds.
"It's good for business," he says.
The annual dyeing of the Chicago River takes place at 10 a.m. Saturday, and the downtown parade steps off at noon at Columbus Drive and Balbo.
Public transportation is always best choice, but a warning for Brown Line users Saturday. Service will be suspended between Southport and Belmont all day and through 7 p.m. Sunday for maintenance work. Shuttle buses will connect riders to the stops.
