Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival brings
glow of the season to city’s downtown

THE 11TH ANNUAL Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival illuminates the streets and parks of downtown Milwaukee through Jan. 3. Thousands of lights, dozens of animated displays, sparkling rooflines, brilliant wreaths and a stretch of Moravian stars along Wisconsin Avenue decorate the city for the six-week festival.

“The Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival has made Milwaukee a premier holiday destination,” said Beth Nicols, executive director of Milwaukee Downtown, Business Improvement District #21. “It’s a great opportunity to showcase the many amenities and activities we have here in Milwaukee – especially during the holiday season. From performing arts and sporting events to concerts and exhibitions, not to mention unique retail destinations and restaurants, downtown Milwaukee is a great place to get in the spirit of things,” said Nicols.

Three parks beam with kaleidoscopes of color.

• Cathedral Square Park, located at N. Jefferson and E. Wells Streets, hosts “Community Spirit Park.” Students from 60 metro Milwaukee schools created the handmade ornaments that adorn fresh evergreens in this location. The energy efficient LED lit trees surround a 50-foot tree of ever-changing red, blue and green lights.

• Pere Marquette Park, located at W. State and Old World 3rd Streets, features “Santa’s Little Helpers.”

• Zeidler Union Square, located at W. Michigan Street between 3rd and 4th Streets, showcases “Holiday High Seas.”

Wisconsin Avenue, downtown Milwaukee’s grandest stretch, is shining bright with double wreaths adorned in blue and white LED lights on the avenue’s harp lamps, and 6-foot Moravian stars suspended above each intersection.

From storefront decorations and roofline lighting to park and harp lamp decorations, visitors can experience the festival’s myriad of color aboard the convenient Jingle Bus. For $1 per person, this Coach USA bus takes visitors on a 40-minute tour throughout downtown. A friendly Public Service Ambassador is on board to acquaint visitors with downtown attractions.

The Jingle Bus operates from 6-9 p.m.Thursday through Sunday through Jan. 3. The bus departs from the festival’s Warming House at 161 W. Wisconsin Ave. located in the Plankinton Arcade at The Shops of Grand Avenue.

Hot cocoa, coffee and cookies are served to waiting Jingle Bus riders. In addition, children receive coloring books and crayons. Discounted parking is available at The Shops of Grand Avenue attached parking structure with a Jingle Bus validation. The Jingle Bus will not operate Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve or New Year’s Day.

For the ninth year in a row, the Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival has preserved a historic piece of Milwaukee with a timeless, limited edition ornament of a downtown Milwaukee icon. The 2009 edition features the historic Milwaukee Federal Courthouse and is available through the festival’s info line or Web site.

For more information on the Milwaukee Holiday Lights Festival, phone 414-220-4700, ext. 30, or visit www.MilwaukeeHolidayLights.com.

Milwaukee Downtown, Business Improvement District #21, is an organization established in 1998 to support the interests of the downtown Milwaukee business community. Created through private sector leadership, Milwaukee Downtown is a management district organization that oversees 120 square blocks representing approximately 400 property owners in the center of downtown Milwaukee. The organization has been nationally recognized for its diverse initiatives aimed at creating one of the country’s cleanest, safest and friendliest downtowns.