Winterhaven to illuminate Tucson Dec. 11 after COVID-19 canceled festival last year

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TUCSON (KVOA) – Get your Santa hats and Christmas cheer ready, one of Tucson’s longest-running Christmas traditions is back.

Since 1949, Tucson community members and December visitors alike have been wandering the neighborhood on Fort Lowell Road between Country Club Road and Tucson Boulevard to see the unique and bright Christmas displays. For that 70 year period, the annual Winterhaven Festival of Lights raised thousands of dollars each year to support local nonprofits like the Southern Arizona Community Food Bank while entertaining visitors with intricate Christmas displays.

After 70 years of getting the Old Pueblo in the holiday mood, the annual holiday get-together was unfortunately canceled last year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Heading into the Christmas season with some uncertainty due to the recent surge caused by the Delta variant, many Tucsonans were concerned that they might have to go another year without Winterhaven lights.

On Friday, however, the Winterhaven festival organizers announced that the show would take place this year.

According to the organizers, this year’s festival will take place from December 11th to 26th daily from 6pm to 10pm.

With a drive-through night slated for December 26th, organizers are assuring guests that they are following city guidelines regarding the virus and ensuring the safety of the community during the festival.

“We want to assure you all that we will do everything in our power to follow city guidelines and ensure this event takes place in the safest possible way,” said Festival Chairman John Lansdale. “We will continue to keep the community informed throughout the planning process and inform all residents if changes in city regulations force us to change our plans in any way. I hope you are all as excited as we are to have this great event happening again on the calendar. We’ll do our best to make it the best festival ever. “

You can find more information about this year’s festival at winterhavenfestival.org.

Lansdale’s full statement is given below.

Festival of Lights Winterhaven 2021 is ON !!!

September 20, 2021

Winterhaven is very pleased to announce that we are planning the Festival of Lights again this year. The dates are December 11th to 26th, the Drive Through Night is planned for December 26th. As you all know, the city refused our approval for the festival last year due to problems and concerns about the Covid-19 pandemic. While Covid-19 variants are still close by, we and the city believe that the risk of spreading the disease during this outdoor event is minimal. While it is still possible for our local government to restrict events like this in the future, we are currently proceeding with all planning for the event.

We want to assure you all that we will do everything in our power to follow city guidelines and ensure this event is conducted in the safest possible manner. We will continue to keep the community informed as the planning process progresses and will notify all residents if changes in city regulations force us to change our plans in any way. I hope you are all as excited as we are that this great event is back on the calendar. We will do our best to make it the best festival ever. Please start planning your Christmas decorations and let’s all work together to make this a safe and festive event.

John Lansdale
Festival chair

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