Cities model New Year's events after Times Square
PHOENIX — Televised images every year of New York City's glittery ball drop in Times Square have become inextricably linked with New Year's Eve. But Times Square isn't the only place to ring in the new year with an object dropping from the sky at midnight.
Cities around the country have been putting their own twist on the New York event in recent years, such as a cowboy boot, pine cone and playing card in Arizona and a peach and orange in Atlanta and Miami, respectively.
In this Dec. 31, 2013 photo, the crowd cheers and fireworks explode in the sky as a lighted cowboy boot drops to the roof of the Palace Saloon New Year's Eve on Whiskey Row in downtown Prescott, Ariz. (AP Photo/The Daily Courier, Les Stukenberg)
In this Dec. 31, 2013 photo, the crowd cheers as a lighted cowboy boot drops to the roof of the Palace Saloon New Year's Eve on Whiskey Row in downtown Prescott, Ariz. But Times Square isn’t the only place to ring in the new year with an object dropping from the sky at midnight. (AP Photo/The Daily Courier, Les Stukenberg)
This Jan. 1, 2014 photo shows a lighted cowboy boot drop resting on the roof of the Palace Saloon, officially marking the start of the new year on Whiskey Row in downtown Prescott, Ariz. (AP Photo/The Daily Courier, Les Stukenberg)
In this Dec. 31, 2013 photo, people cheer and celebrate New Year's Eve during the annual Boot Drop on Whiskey Row in downtown Prescott, Ariz. (AP Photo/The Daily Courier, Les Stukenberg)
In New Mexico, the city of Las Cruces plans to drop a 19-foot (5.79-meter) chrome chile at midnight Thursday.
Officials in cities with Times Square-styled celebrations have found that the events are great ways to draw people to their downtowns while embracing their heritage.
