Bright lights of Christmas in the Park start Nov. 28
By Kelly Kelbly, Parks & Recreation Assistant Director
If you’re like me, you struggle with putting out Christmas decorations when your last guest leaves at Thanksgiving.
That’s not the case with the bright and colorful lights that go up for the city’s annual Christmas at the Park.
For more than 30 years, Parks and Recreation crews have spent 6-8 weeks each fall installing the lights and hand-crafted panels at Stephen C. Beachy Central Park. That means the effort begins in early October, long before you even thaw your Thanksgiving turkey.
The crews diligently work around fall leagues and events to transition the park into a lighted winter wonderland. They toil in the heat, cold, rain — and sometimes ice — to ensure a radiant and festive glow when we flip the switch on Thanksgiving Day.
The centerpiece is the Tower of Power, a 90-foot tall Christmas Tree adorned with 14,000 shimmering lights. Thanks to a generous donation by the Britt Rice family, the popular ritual of spinning beneath the giant tree continues.
We also encourage you to take your family’s traditional drive through the 60 strands of lights that frame Santa’s Lane. The only nights that won’t be available are on Christmas in the Park event weekends Dec. 6-7 and Dec. 13-14. We’ll close the drive-thru at 7 a.m. on event days to keep everyone safe as we set-up for visits with Santa, hayrides, and of course, hot chocolate and cookies.
Shuttles will run from 5-10 p.m. from the Post Oak Mall parking lot (JC Penny side) to the park. Handicap parking will be at the park’s softball complex, which is accessible from State Highway 6.
You can still walk through the 36 snowflakes in Snowflake Forest, take pictures in front of the 36-foot lighted paddleboat, and wander along the tunnel on the back trail.
For many local families, Christmas in the Park has become a holiday institution. The Parks & Recreation family invites you to continue the tradition and create new and lasting memories.
About the Blogger
Assistant Director Kelly Kelbly is in her 18th year with the College Station Parks & Recreation Department. A native of Gilmer, Kelly is a 1998 graduate of Texas A&M.
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For more information, go to cstx.gov/christmas.
4 new twists for Christmas in the Park
By Kelli Nesbitt, Parks & Recreation Marketing Coordinator
Now that the colorful holiday lights are on in Stephen C. Beachy Central Park, it’s time for consecutive weekends of fun at the City of College Station’s Christmas in the Park.
The first activities are Friday and Saturday from 6-10 p.m. at Beachy Central Park, followed by the second weekend Dec. 7-8.
In its 35th year, the annual Christmas event promises to be even better with an additional weekend of festivities, a pair of snow slides, a mobile stage, and a full slate of family-friendly experiences. As usual, you can also enjoy free hot cocoa and cookies, pictures with Santa, hayrides, performances by local song and dance groups, and more.
Christmas in the Park has evolved from a tiny idea and small light display in 1984 into a beloved community tradition. During those years, we tried a lot of different things. Some worked well, and others failed. Here are four new twists we’re trying out in 2018:
- Recreation Drive will close from 4-10 p.m. and visitors will be unable to drive through the park. Shuttles will run from 5:30-10:30 p.m. from the Post Oak Mall parking lot (JCPenney side). Handicap parking will be located at the Beachy Central Park softball complex, which can be accessed from State Highway 6.
- Free wristbands are required to participate in activities, including the hayride, snow slides, arts and crafts, joy jumps, train, petting zoo, and photos with Santa. To receive a wristband, you must complete a waiver form at an information booth.
- A professional photographer is no longer provided for photos with Santa, but you are encouraged to bring your camera to capture the moment. Pets aren’t allowed.
- Because of the construction of the Fun for All Playground, our 90-foot-tall Christmas tree has been relocated along Recreation Lane. The new spot has plenty of room to continue the tradition of spinning beneath the giant Tower of Power.
If you can’t make it out for the Christmas in the Park activity weekends, you can still drive or walk through the park on other nights from 6-11 p.m. through New Year’s Day. Our more than 1 million beautiful lights are always the main attraction.
For more information, go to cstx.gov/Christmas or call 979-764-3486.
About the Blogger
Kelli Nesbitt (@kneztalk) has served the Parks & Recreation Department for 14 years, the last seven as marketing coordinator. A native of Bryan, Kelli earned a bachelor’s degree in health & kinesiology from Sam Houston State.
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Holiday cheer returns with Christmas in the Park
By Kelly Kelbly, Assistant Parks & Recreation Director
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas – at least in Stephen C. Beachy Central Park!
College Station’s beautiful Christmas in the Park displays began in 1984 with a couple of light panels and funding from a local family. The displays have grown to more than one million lights and have become a holiday mainstay in our community.
This year, the lights will burn nightly from 6-11 p.m. from Nov. 22 through New Year’s Day.
What’s different this year?
Thanks to a generous donation by Britt Rice Electric, the 90-foot-tall Christmas tree – a community favorite with more than 14,000 bulbs – will be relocated along Recreation Lane to accommodate the ongoing construction of the Fun for All Playground. Despite the move, the tradition of spinning beneath the giant Tower of Power will continue.
We also encourage you to continue the tradition of driving through the 60 strands of lights that envelop Santa’s Lane. We’ll close the drive-thru on the weekends of Nov. 30-Dec.1 and Dec.7-8 to keep everyone safe as you visit Santa, go on hayrides and grab free hot chocolate and cookies. On those nights, you can still walk through Snowflake Forest – made up of 36 snowflakes – and take pictures in front of the 36-foot lighted paddle boat.
Thank you, Parks crews!
Our crews work year-round prepping the light panels to ensure they brightly shine when it’s time to switch them on. The hundreds of illuminated panels – a bulb for every inch – must be taped precisely to preserve the panel’s mesmerizing effects. Cemetery Sexton Ron Schaefer, better known around our offices as Father Christmas, manages workers from all park districts throughout the fall to create nothing less than Christmas magic.
We encourage you to enjoy the time-honored tradition of holiday lights at Beachy Central Park. For more information, go to cstx.gov/Christmas or call 979-764-3486.
About the Blogger
Assistant Director Kelly Kelbly is in her 18th year with the College Station Parks & Recreation Department. A native of Gilmer, Kelly is a 1998 graduate of Texas A&M.
If you found value in this blog post, please share it with your social network and friends!
Christmas in the Park: an event like no other
By Gerry Logan, Special Events Supervisor
In 2015, one of College Station’s most popular traditions – Christmas in the Park — returned to its original home at Stephen C. Beachy Central Park after several years at Wolf Pen Creek Park. Perfect weather cleared the way for more than 15,000 guests to celebrate the event’s successful homecoming.
Scheduled for Dec. 2-4 (Friday-Sunday), this year’s Christmas in the Park promises to be even better with an expanded festival day, a mobile stage and a full slate of family-friendly activities. You can also enjoy the usual free hot cocoa and cookies, pictures with Santa, hayrides, and much more.
Event hours are 6-10 p.m. on Friday and Sunday and noon-10 p.m. on Saturday’s festival day, an hour longer than last year. Festival day will feature a vendor village stocked with tons of great Christmas gifts, two snow slides, bounce houses, food, and pictures with Disney and Christmas characters. You will also enjoy the ever-popular performances by local song and dance groups on our new mobile stage.
We encourage you to arrive at least 30 minutes early to allow time to park and get to the event site. For your convenience, we’ll have a shuttle available from the Municipal Court lots just down the street at 300 Krenek Tap Rd.
If you can’t make it out for the Christmas in the Park activities, you won’t want to miss driving or walking through the park to enjoy the more than 1 million beautiful lights that are always the main attraction. We’ll turn the lights on at Thanksgiving and display them nightly from 6-11 p.m. through New Year’s Day.
Christmas in the Park can help make a lifetime of memories for you and your family.
For more information and a full parking map, go to cstx.gov/christmas or call 979.764.3486.
About the Author
Gerry Logan (@GL_sportsguy) is in his fourth year with the Parks & Recreation Department and has served as special events supervisor since 2014. He was previously the sports coordinator for the City of Clinton (Miss.) for three years. A native of Pontotoc, Miss., Gerry is a graduate student at Texas A&M after earning a degree in parks & recreation management from the University of Mississippi in 2010.
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Christmas event’s relocation met with positive reviews
By Kelli Nesbitt, Parks & Recreation Marketing Coordinator
As Santa heads back to the North Pole to prepare for his Christmas Eve deliveries, the Parks and Recreation staff is cleaning up, repairing lights and picking up remnants of the good times left behind from last weekend’s Christmas in the Park event.
We enjoyed watching families revel under the giant Christmas tree and delight in the festive light displays and activities. Everyone seemed to have a positive response to Christmas in the Park’s return to Stephen C. Beachy Central Park after four years at Wolf Pen Creek Park.
My memories of Christmas in the Park
When I was a kid growing up in Bryan-College Station, the holiday season didn’t officially kick-off until I saw the giant Christmas tree light up the sky over Stephen C. Beachy Central Park on Thanksgiving Day. The long days waiting for Thanksgiving evening to arrive was a time of pleasurable anticipation. We spent the day cooking, watching the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and eating the feast that my mom prepared. After dinner, we piled in to the car to see the beautiful Christmas lights decorating Stephen C. Beachy Central Park.
The excitement would build as we drove down Krenek Tap Road and took in every light pole scene we passed. As we turned onto Central Park Lane, there was something magical about driving under the “Christmas in the Park” arch. My eyes would start to wander to all of the shimmering lights and handcrafted displays, as I would try figure out what was new from the year before.
