Local officials, members of Italian heritage groups and residents of Nutley and Belleville gathered in view of their towns' Christopher Columbus statues Sunday to celebrate the explorer's legacy. The activities, which included a morning flag-raising in front of Belleville Town Hall and a wreath-laying ceremony and car parade in Nutley, replaced the towns' joint Columbus Day parade, which is one of the largest in the state.

It was canceled because of the pandemic. About 50 people wearing face masks, many sporting Unico sashes of green, red and white, attended the Belleville flag-raising sponsored by the Federation of Italian-American Societies of New Jersey.