Large crowd gathers for tree lighting on State Street
The Christmas tree is lit during the Winter Wonderland Block Party & Christmas Tree Lighting ceremony at the Arlington Theatre on Friday.
Santa Barbarans didn’t let the cold and damp keep them indoors Friday evening, as well over a hundred people gathered together with friends and family to witness this year’s Christmas tree lighting event outside the Arlington Theatre.
The event, which is part of the Downtown Santa Barbara organization’s Season of Cheer, also featured a holiday “block party” inside Arlington Court that offered music by DJ Darla Bea and a variety of family-friendly activities.
While event organizers expressed some concern over the light rain that fell on the city throughout the afternoon and into the early evening — a forecast that earlier caused the block party portion of the event to be moved indoors from its original location outside on the 1300 block of State Street — a steady stream of bundled-up attendees, many gripping holiday-themed cups bearing hot seasonal drinks from Starbucks Coffee, began filing inside to fill the space shortly after the event began.
Upon entering Arlington Court, attendees were greeted with festoons of gold garlands, other classic Christmas decorations, and a space awash in red and green lights and the sounds of DJ Darla Bea spinning classic holiday tracks.
Activities such as wreath making, face painting, a Santa Barbara Public Library pop-up, and a small artisanal market all drew heavy engagement from those in attendance. Other big draws at the event included a meet-and-greet with Santa, as well as a station where children could dictate letters to the North Pole that were typed up on typewriters for a retro spin on the holiday activity.
As the clock neared five minutes ’till 7, Santa Barbara Mayor Randy Rowse led the assembled crowd in a countdown for the tree lighting. Immediately upon the lights and tree-topped star flashing on at the end of the count, the San Marcos High School Band treated the gathering to a medley of Christmas songs that included “Jingle Bells” and “Angels We Have Heard on High.”
email: jdaniels@newspress.com
FYI
To learn more about Downtown Santa Barbara events this holiday season, visit downtownsb.org/events/holiday-events.
