Features

Christmas Tree Lane invites visitors, Dec. 2-25

Julian Castro

December 7, 2015

[/media-credit] Homeowners decorate their yards and houses with decadent Christmas attractions, drawing large crowds to Christmas Tree Lane, Dec. 2-25. Next walking evening, Dec.Walk night No. 2 is Dec. 8

Walk event No. 2 is Dec. 8

Christmas Tree Lane is an event held in Fresno, which draws massive crowds each year. From Dec. 2-25, all the homeowners on the Lane are committed to decorating their houses with displays that amaze crowds annually.

Year after year friends and families gather in warm clothing and with hot drinks to either walk or drive down the street. The families of the Lane spend incredible amounts of time to give the people a good show.

Homeowner Jarrod Martinez loves living on Christmas tree lane, but realizes that it comes with a good amount of work. He and his family start working on decorations well in advance.

“It took a couple months to build and design all the things which is a lot of fun,” Martinez said. “But to set it all up we usually start a week before Thanksgiving.”

Martinez loves living on Christmas Tree Lane because the atmosphere and the people are great. Martinez recognizes that the best thing about Old Fig Garden is that the community is wonderful and around Christmas time, everyone pulls together to make the experience a great one.

Whenever I go, I think it’s a really fun thing to do with friends and family. I enjoy walking down it because I get to see all the houses decorated differently and sometimes people even hand out hot chocolate or food. It’s nice to see those things. — Brooklyn Ainley

The community of the Lane, both within and outside, all help in some way. The houses decorate and make a beautiful Christmas experience and those who walk on the Lane help make donations which go towards the costs of the lights and the electricity bills.

Junior Brooklyn Ainley enjoys going down the Lane every year that she gets the chance. She enjoys spending time with friends and family while walking.

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“Whenever I go, I think it’s a really fun thing to do with friends and family,” Ainley said. “I enjoy walking down it because I get to see all the houses decorated differently and sometimes people even hand out hot chocolate or food. It’s nice to see those things.”

The Lane gives the opportunity to both drive and walk it to view its decorations. This season, two walking nights have been hosted, on Dec. 2 and 8. From 6-8 p.m, anyone who wishes can walk down the Lane. Besides the two walking nights, every other night is open to the public to drive down.

[/media-credit] The Lane thrives off of hard work and dedication from homeowners, who invest time and money into the event.

The tradition of Christmas Tree Lane began in 1920 and a single tree was decorated to honor the death of a child. According to Christmas Tree Lane’s website, more than 100,000 people visit every year. Over a million lights are turned on during its holiday lifespan and the only times the lane went dark were in 1941 due to the war and in 1971 due to an energy crisis.

Going down and seeing Christmas Tree Lane is a wonderful way to get into the Christmas spirit. The lights, the hot drinks and the “friends and family” aspect provide an attractive event to those who enjoy the Christmas season.