MIDDLEBURG – Parade organizer Dale Carter hopes the construction along Blanding Boulevard will be completed by this time next year so he can move the Middleburg Christmas Parade from County Road 218 to better accommodate the record number of participants and crowd. Last Saturday’s event attracted 90 participants. The crowd stood three- and four-deep in some portions of the route. “Everybody’s talking good about it,” Carter said. “We had a lot of schools there, too – the JROTCs from Middleburg and Ridgeview. Of course, we had Wilkinson. The parade was organized by the Clay County Business Association. “To be honest with you, I don’t know how many people there were, but there was a lot. I think it’s safe to say it was a record turnout.” If the work on Blanding Boulevard is finally completed, Carter believes those numbers will grow again next year.