Downtown Lodi leaders look to light and liven up this year's holiday season

published by the Lodi News Sentinel written by Wes Bowers

Lodi is currently experiencing near-triple digit temperatures, but the Downtown Business Association already has the holiday season on its mind. President David Claxton laid out the association’s plan to turn downtown into a winter wonderland in December during the Lodi City Council’s Wednesday meeting.

“This year the DBA board, we decided we would make it our mission to bring more life to downtown during the holiday season,” he said. “We want to ‘Hallmark’ downtown and make it a destination for holiday shopping, gathering and dining.”

Claxton said the DBA is partnering with the Lodi Chamber of Commerce, VisitLodi and the City of Lodi in the endeavor, and has already met with some 35 downtown businesses.

The plan, he said, is to “light up” School Street with decorative overhead lighting from Lodi Avenue to Lockeford Street, and erect a large, fully decorated tree at the U.S. Postal Service plaza downtown.

The DBA board is currently building a mobile gingerbread house for events featuring Santa Claus, and a volunteer to play him is already on board, he said.

Wreaths and VisitLodi’s holiday banners will be placed on every street light downtown, and large bows will be placed on all the elm trees.

“We are hoping to get poinsettias in every door and window,” Claxton said. “We will ask all businesses to decorate their storefronts, and we’ll hold a ‘best decorated’ contest with prizes. We’ll have a hot chocolate stand, and hopefully a nonprofit will run it.”

Live music will be played downtown throughout the holiday season, horse-drawn carriages will be returning, and the board is also working on a shuttle program to take visitors from the Downtown Parking Garage to School Street and back, he said.

In addition, the DBA has a long-term plan to bring an ice skating rink back to downtown in the future.

A temporary ice skating rink was located on Elm Street in front of the Lodi Stadium 12 theater in 2002 for the Downtown Lodi Business Partnership’s Dickens Faire, a four-day event that recreated 19th century Victorian England.

“Bringing back the skating rink, whether it is truly ice or an artificial surface, is going to be a bit of a complicated long-term project to pull together due to cost, permitting, access, etc.,” he said. “Our goal is 2025 or 2026, and we’d love to get as much support from the city as possible.”

Small Business Saturday on Nov. 30 will kick-off the DBA’s holiday season, and the city will formally light the tree at the Post Office that evening, Claxton said.

The Downtown Lodi Parade of Lights will take place on Thursday, Dec. 5, and an “Ornament Stroll” will take place on Saturday, Dec. 7, which will open the voting period for the storefront decoration contest.

On Thursday, Dec. 12, the DBA will hot a “Late Night Shopping Night,” where businesses will stay open until 8 p.m. That day will also close the decoration contest voting period.

Council members were on board with the DBA’s plan, and directed staff to place an item on a future agenda to commit support.

“We all want to support the business community,” Mayor Lisa Craig said. “And I think this is a good way to do that, along with ensuring our residents are having the ultimate holiday experience.”