WICKER PARK — If you see scary folks creeping around Milwaukee Avenue on Saturday, don't be alarmed: It's just the third annual Zombies vs. Vampires pub crawl.
Scheduled for 2-10 p.m. Saturday, the Zombies vs. Vampires Pub Crawl promises to "release thousands of Chicago's gored up Zombies and Vampires to wreak havoc on the Wicker Park bar scene," according to the event's website.
Tickets to the crawl, which kicks off at Halloween Hallway, 1275 N. Milwaukee Ave., are $25 and include a "Survival Kit" with a map listing participating bars and drink specials, a T-shirt, arcade game tokens and more.
Kristin Sopala, a Wicker Park resident and owner of Costume Crawls, which organizes the Zombies vs. Vampire crawl, said about 750 tickets have been sold as of Tuesday.
Sopala said she expected a crowd of around 1,000 people by the time of the crawl on Saturday, which will be offering free Uber rides of up to $15 per trip for first-time Uber users.
Participating Zombies vs. Vampires bars include The Standard Bar and Grill, 1332 N. Milwaukee Ave.; Emporium Arcade Bar, 1366 N. Milwaukee Ave; Nick's Beer Garden, 1516 N. Milwaukee Ave.; Flat Iron Bar, 1565 N. Milwaukee Ave; Pint, 1547 N. Milwaukee Ave.; Swig, 1469 N. Milwaukee Ave.; and Tavern, 1958 W. North Ave.
Zombies vs. Vampires sponsors include Fireball Whiskey, Miller Coors and Tito's Vodka.
Meanwhile, for folks interested in participating in the Chicago Christmas Crawl, scheduled for noon to 8 p.m. on Dec. 13, organizer Jess Loren will be at Boo-Palooza in the park on Saturday and giving away tickets to that crawl as one of the prizes in the adult costume contest.
Over the past month, Loren met with the members of three area community groups to win approval for her event, which initially went under scrutiny from Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) after media outlets suggested Loren's former ties to the Twelve Bars of Christmas (TBOX) crawl in Wrigleyville could bring similar mayhem to Division Street.
As of Tuesday, Loren said there were 17 participating bars and restaurants along Division Street that were taking part in the Chicago Christmas Crawl, which charges a $35 ticket and will include the opportunity for attendees to buy tasting portions off menus along the stops.
Though it was not a requirement, Loren is in the process of applying for a special event permit to operate her inaugural crawl. The permit requires Moreno and the local police commander to approve the event.
Moreno was not available for comment on the Christmas Crawl on Tuesday, but Raymond Valadez, Moreno's chief of staff, said that he did not anticipate Moreno having any concerns with the Christmas Crawl since three community groups gave their support for the event after meeting with Loren.
As of Tuesday, Loren said ticket sales were still "very minimal," and she hoped the event would be a success, especially after going through a long process to bring the crawl to fruition.
"The collaboration with the community has helped the event. Everyone knows who I am and has my phone number and email," Loren said.
