The City of Parksville plans to unveil a bigger and brighter light show on the trees lining the Alberni Highway through downtown.
Motorists are cautioned that they may need to wait a couple of days for a good close-up look, however.
On Tuesday, Nov. 14 and Wednesday, Nov. 15, city crews will install Christmas lights on the trees on Alberni Highway, on the Sequoia tree on Morison and at the Parksville Civic and Technology Centre, the city announced this week in a written release.
Crews will be working from 7.30 a.m. to 3.30 p.m. both days, with a number of trucks deployed. For this reason, parking will be extremely limited on the Alberni Highway, the city said.
Crews will work in unison on the Alberni Highway:
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The installation along the Alberni Highway will take place between Highway 19A and Jensen Avenue.
Once crews have installed the lights on the trees, parking spaces will come available again.
At Council’s direction, there will be twice as many lights as previous years installed on Alberni Highway and on the Sequoia.
“It may well seem early for the installation of lights,” city communications director Deb Tardiff admitted in the release. “However, we are keen to have the work completed for the Parksville Downtown Business Association light-up event scheduled for Friday, Nov. 24, at 5.30 p.m.”
The new lights for the trees along the Alberni Highway and on Jensen Avenue at the PCTC were provided by the Parksville Downtown Business Association. Following a motion by Coun. Sue Powell during its Oct. 16 regular meeting, council agreed to absorb the cost of the installation, and to purchase and install coloured lights on the Morison Avenue sequoia, up to a maximum of $10,200.
— NEWS Staff/City of Parksville release