Blooming Tradition: Inside Downey’s Timeless Rose Float Legacy

Volunteer Jason Redfox welds the metal frame of the Downey Rose Float Association entry titled “Polar Wonderland” on Dec. 28, 2005. (Photo by Jeff Gritchen/Digital First Media/Orange County Register via Getty Images)

Hands down, the giant, floral-covered floats in Pasadena’s annual Rose Parade are among the most singular and awe-inspiring art forms ever created by humans.

Their design and construction is a collective effort by thousands of people. Their life-cycle is ephemeral, lasting less than a week as the flowers die.

In response to a new theme each January, float builders must conceive and construct a 360-degree scene (on top of a hidden, motorized chassis) that tells a story and is decorated only with organic material—plant products such as flowers, leaves, bark, seeds, etc.

Their work will be judged on how well they present their vision—communicating ideas such as joy, hope, whimsy, history, etc.

Downey’s float entry in this annual event is one of only six that are “self-built.” It is the collaborative work of volunteers, not the result of a commercial contract.

Except for 2021, when the parade was canceled due to the Covid pandemic, the Downey Rose Float Association (DRFA) has submitted yearly entries since 1955, winning 23 awards.

There is no monetary compensation for this annual effort, and no prize other than bragging rights when a special award is received. There is also no how-to manual for building a float that will meet the challenge and standards of the Rose Parade. Volunteers bring their individual skill sets and learn on the job, often through the oral tradition.

So what motivates these dedicated volunteers who have acquired very specialized knowledge over decades of unpaid labor?

Andrew Malarkey, DRFA President, says he first became involved with it when he was 8 years old. He’s been a volunteer now for 30 years.

“It’s something I grew up with,” he explains, “and I like seeing how excited and happy people are to see the floats.”

Malarkey is part of the construction crew and one of the six people needed to ride underneath the float to insure it moves safely down the parade route.

Kelley Roberts, Construction Chairman for 30-plus years, says, “It’s a labor of love. Some people understand it.”

Like Malarkey, Roberts became involved at a young age. He recalls first participating when he had just turned 10, and then working on float construction around age 16. His artistic bent, emerging skills, and leadership ability resulted in his becoming Construction Chairman as a young man.

Roberts’s pride in the annual team effort is apparent as he details the process. “Anybody can go to the store and buy a model, right? We take a picture. That’s all we go off is a picture and make it into a three-dimensional reality out of nothing…You buy the components to make every piece you see.”

Roberts is going on his 46th year as a volunteer, donating evenings and weekends to this yearly project. He brings a lot of experience to constructions projects, having worked at Knott’s Berry Farm on the amusement park rides for over 26 years, and now working for the Amusement Ride and Tramway Unit for Cal OSHA.

Danielle Storey, Floral Chairperson, mother of three, and teacher at Downey High School, had a different first encounter with the float, but was instantly captivated by the project.

Storey was a young, married woman working in a floral shop when Mike Prokop, longtime volunteer and former DRFA president, suggested she might like to participate in Downey’s yearly effort. She decided she could spare a little time and help with the float for January 2000. Her husband had other plans that night, so she went alone.

“I’ll be back in two hours,” she told him. Six hours later he went to find her. The family has been very involved ever since, an example of the depth of commitment often inspired by this community project.

“My boys were born onto the float,” affirms Storey. “I would take my boys down to the float. My mom would babysit the boys during decoration week, bring them down so I could feed them and take them back.”

Sometimes, Storey continues, “they were passed around between all of the ladies of the float so that I could work. When I had my third one it was a little harder because I had three – two toddlers and a third one at home.” She explains that she remained involved even when she had to take “a little bit of a gap year.”

While the Downey floats are a collaborative effort, Roberts, as Construction Chairman, steers the entire process—knowing what is physically possible, what is allowed by the rules, what features might need a variance, etc.

In addition to the actual construction of the float, Roberts is responsible for the safety of everyone involved, before, during, and after the parade, and maintenance of the float barn and decoration building.

Details and Complexity

Downey’s float entry this past January, “Our Garden Railroad,” had a steam locomotive pulling train cars carrying Miss Downey and her float. It won the Founder’s Trophy for Most Beautiful Float Created and Built by Volunteers.

While delightfully intricate to the average viewer, Roberts explains, “I wouldn’t say it was one of the most complex; it was one of the most detailed floats.”

The functioning train required a design variance from Parade officials. The sides of the track were covered in seaweed, but the parade association allowed the top of the track and the wheels to remain uncovered so the train could operate. Building began in late September and finished December 31, taking less than four months total.

Roberts says that the most complex float created by DRFA was the entry for 2017, “The Gold Rush.” It had a working rollercoaster with 300 feet of track carrying a mining car. Float dimensions were 55’ X 18’ with a height of 32’.

In contrast to the four-month construction time for this year’s float, building for the approved rollercoaster entry started in February 2016. The ten-month construction period still seems remarkably short, considering the custom design and repeated testing required so the coaster could operate safely on a moving platform throughout the parade.

“You start with the coaster,” Roberts explains, “because you can’t make changes to the track because the track is what it is…The car has to have a certain span to turn, to go over hills, the lift, and then we build the float around the coaster track.”

The ingenious float earned DRFA the Governor’s trophy that year for best depiction of Life in California.

Collaboration

The Tournament of Roses announces the theme for the coming year shortly after completion of the parade on New Year’s Day. DRFA invites design submissions from everyone in the community.

“We’ll have a special meeting to select first, second, and third place out of all these sketches,” Roberts says. “We’ll talk about each one, the pros and cons on each one, decorating pros and cons, and construction pros and cons, animation.”

The technical requirements are major factors because of cost as well as complexity of construction.

“I guess the biggest challenge is things you need to buy for some designs,” reflects Roberts. “You need to purchase, maybe hydraulic cylinders. You need motor gearboxes, bearings. It all costs a lot of money, so we ask for donations.”

Flowers (color and kind) are also a big factor because they are purchased, not donated. Roberts works closely with Storey, who procures all of the plant material, and an artist and volunteer, Dave Pittman, who supplies a full color rendering of the new design.

“Our rendering person puts more of the colors to life,” says Storey. A decision is made about the color palette. Storey divides the float into sections for the decorating process.

“The bottom base is always traditionally roses,” she continues. “Based on the color scheme, I just start playing with different flowers.”

Storey makes a master list of all available flowers for given colors and considers where they could be used on the float.

“You know, a gladiola can’t go at the bottom of the base,” she clarifies. Changes of color and arrangements are always possible as the team confers through the summer. “Then I just go to town,” she affirms.

Storey creates a Decoration Notebook with the number and type of flowers required for each section. She needs 25 roses per square foot, for example, and calculates the cost of each area.

Storey’s notebook is sufficiently detailed so that others can work from it, she explains, “if something were to happen to me or Kelley.”

The entire board is involved in anticipating costs and deciding how much fundraising is needed. Flowers and ancillary materials such as pins, vials, and glue, can cost up to $40,000 for a self-built float.

“But we really try to stay within $25,000-$32,000 for the budget,” says Storey, “and we try to use our resources within the community.”

Storey acknowledges the support of two local restaurants, The Olive Restobar and El Pescador, which supply fruits and vegetables that add texture to the float. Fans may recall the float from 2023, Bee Inspired, that had a honeycomb that included lemons and limes. Storey has also made use of vegetables such as bell peppers, onions, and cabbages.

Rose float volunteers also reach out to Christmas tree lots on the day after Christmas. Storey uses the evergreen boughs around the base and underneath the flowers. The greens set off the colors of the flowers and also hide the vials of water holding each individual rose.

Downey’s entry last year, Rhythm of the Caribbean, 2024, won the Wrigley Legacy Award for the Most Outstanding Display of Floral Presentation, Float Design, and Entertainment. The giant flamingos were covered in red and pink carnations.

Driving the Float

Completing the float on December 31 is not the final hurdle of this Herculean task. Builders are up all day and all night getting their floats to the parade and hoping that their respective floats will move successfully down the parade route

Six people ride underneath Downey’s float to keep it moving safely. The center seat driver can not really see much of the road, even when there is a small window, because the seat on the Downey float is approximately 20 feet back from the front. People positioned in the front tell the driver his location.

Andrew Malarkey peeks his head out from underneath a large bee and between flower beds while steering the Downey Rose Float Association Bee Inspiried! float, which won the Leishman Public Spirit award, during the 2023 Tournament of Roses Parade on Jan. 2, 2023. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)

“You have to just practice for the driver’s position,” says Roberts. “You have to basically put on a blindfold and put the headset on and listen to the people telling you how to steer.”

People positioned in the back of the float, sometimes including Roberts’s brother, manage any animatronics and tend to the motor.

It is an operation that requires a lot of experience and teamwork and when asked if younger people are getting involved and will be able to continue the tradition, Roberts indicates that he is not worried.

“There’s younger generations of builders in my crew, and they’re all learning different aspects of it,” he answers.

Storey recalls that her son Christopher started working with Roberts on construction of the float while in middle school and later learned how to weld.

Now 19 years old, Christopher’s commitment earned him a seat on the drivers crew and an honorary Red Jacket from DRFA.

Benefits to the City

Last year the Pasadena Tournament of Roses reported that the average cost of a high-quality float was $275,000. Floats with elaborate floral designs and animatronics can cost more.

Storey reports that DRFA tries to fundraise “anywhere between $65,000 to $100,000 throughout the year.”

The City of Downey has contributed yearly grants of $30,000 in past years, seeing this as a worthwhile investment for several reasons.

The parade is broadcast worldwide to over a hundred countries, providing immense advertising and name recognition for the city. The parade also brings visitors to the city and the spending that goes along with that. In addition to seeing the parade, many people want to arrive a few days early for the experience of decorating a float.

“Some people fly from the east coast to come and decorate on Downey’s float,” says Roberts. “Sometimes they come back every year.”

Roberts describes a significant advantage to working on Downey’s float rather than a commercial one.

“They [commercial float organizers] will tell you what time to arrive,” says Roberts, “and where you are going to work.”

If too many people show up at one time to decorate Downey’s float, Roberts will ask some people to take a break for 15-20 minutes.

“We try to accommodate as many people as we can,” he says. “It may be a bucket list item out on the float, right? And I want to make sure that you put that checkbox next to that bucket list.”

The theme of the Pasadena Rose Parade next year is “The Magic in Teamwork.” Given its successful collaboration for over five decades of float building, the Downey Rose Float Association should have another winning entry January 1, 2026.