Posted on

No tree lighting in Worthington Park in 2020

No tree lighting in Worthington Park in 2020

Share

West Memphis skipping annual Christmas tradition due to coronavirus concerns

news@theeveningtimes.com Christmas lights will shine in Worthington Park this year but city officials nixed the annual tree lighting ceremony. Some folks have expressed an aversion to talking about Christmas lighting before Halloween or Thanksgiving, but the city needed to make plans.

COVID-19 concerns led both the Advertising and Promotions commission, which funded the park display, and City Council agreed there would be no way to maintain social distancing protocol for the normal ceremonies where children pack the stage to sing and take turns expressing wishes on Santa's knee.

Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Director Jim Jackson told city council it renewed its annual agreement with the lighting contractor but halted the ceremony that included Santa flipping on the switch for the holiday lights.

'Obviously, this year is a little different,' said Jackson. 'We had just one company bid, the same company that has done it for years, but the bid process was good for keeping them on their toes.'

Lights will shine for families to see at three locations around the town. The grandest display was set again for Worthington Park. Travelers from both the service road and the interstates will see tree shaped displays in the Martin Luther King Park and Ride north of Kroger.

A cycling Santa waves and smiles from the Big River Crossing Trail Head across from Panchos and the newest fire station in the city at East Broadway and South Loop.

The old fashioned lamp posts in the main street district have worn white holiday lights year round and will have decorative wreaths added for the holiday shopping season.

The same social distancing concerns forced cancellation of the city's Independence Day observation called Freedom Fest set on the banks of Gammon Lake in Tilden Rodgers Park in June.

File photo

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

LAST NEWS
Scroll Up