Downtown garlands hung, new Christmas lights put on village tree

By Jason Emerson

Editor

It may have been a high of 54 degrees on Tuesday, Nov. 15, but it was still time to decorate downtown Cazenovia for the holidays. Those decorations included the annual hanging of the garlands across business fronts on Albany Street, and this year included stringing 8,000 new Christmas lights on the village tree at the intersection of Albany and Fenner streets by the village fountain.

The new tree lights were needed because the previous lights died, said Village Trustee Amy Mann, who is also the public works commissioner. The village looked into replacing the old lights with new LED Christmas lights, but that would have cost the village over $8,000, she said. Instead, the village purchased regular, non-LED light strings, which cost the village $2,345.

“I just hated to see that tree go dark.  Even though it is not our main official village tree, I think it adds great spirit to that end of the business district and I’m so happy we could find a solution,” Mann said.

The village board’s unanimous approval to purchase new tree lights during its Nov. 7 board meeting is subject to a permissive referendum, which means any residents who feel this matter should be reviewed must acquire a certain percentage of signatures within 30 days of the action’s adoption and it will be put to a public vote.

The old lights were removed from the tree and the new lights hung by crews from Nelson Tree Service last week, which took about half a day. The labor costs for the work were donated to the village by National Grid, Mann said.

Also on Nov. 15, members of the Cazenovia Garden Club, student volunteers from Cazenovia College and village Department of Public Works crew members hung garlands and red ribbons across the fronts of businesses on both sides of Albany Street in the historic business district, from the public fountain at the intersection of Albany and Fenner streets down to Common Grounds/Dave’s Diner. The public fountain as well as the public kiosk in Telephone Park were also decorated with garlands.

“This is just fun,” said Cazenovia College senior Heather Greenwood, who was helping with the decorations for the third consecutive year. “A lot of my friends help and it’s time we get to spend together and we get to help the community too.”

Greenwood was among 30 Cazenovia College students who, along with Dean of Student Life Katie O’Brien, helped decorate the village

“Cazenovia College students have helped the Cazenovia Garden Club with this project for over a decade,” said O’Brien. “Actively engaging in the local community is important to the college and important to these students, who are members of Alpha Phi Omega (APO), a national service organization, and Sigma Alpha Pi, a national leadership society.”

On Thursday, Nov. 17, the weather was a bit colder and more reminiscent of November as the downtown holiday work continued with the hanging of wreaths and the decoration of hanging baskets. Village DPW crews hung 36 holiday wreaths on all the lampposts along Albany Street, while the Garden Club members used a seasonal assortment of evergreen boughs, crab apples, sumac, boxwood and pinecones to decorate the hanging boxes throughout the village.

On Friday, Dec. 2, the Cazenovia community will celebrate the annual Cazenovia Christmas Walk along Albany Street. Starting at 6 p.m., Not for Profits will be lining the sidewalks, shops will be open and International Santas and Community Band will be entertaining. The Christmas tree lighting and arrival of Santa on a fire truck will take place in front of the Presbyterian church, along with caroling by Cazenovia High School Choir and dance presented by Cazenovia School of Ballet.

Then from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday morning, Dec. 3, the Cazenovia Garden Club will hold its annual holiday plant sale in the Cazenovia Public Library community room. The sale is a fundraiser for the Cazenovia Garden Club, with funds used for village beautification.

Some village holiday tree history

The Cazenovia Garden Club has been hanging garlands on the downtown business fronts since the mid-1980s, according to club members. In the 1970s and early 1980s, the club placed small trees in containers with red bows around the village.

The history behind the Fenner/Albany streets village tree and its holiday lights has proven impossible to discover so far by village officials and historians. The official village Christmas tree in front of the Presbyterian church, however, is better documented.

According to Cazenovia Republican archives, the evergreen tree in front of the Presbyterian church that was the traditional village Christmas tree since before 1974 was given to the village in 1949 by “a long-time resident who used to have a nursery on West Lake Road.” As early as 1978, the annual village “Christmas Walk” was actually called the “Shoppers’ Walk,” according to local historian Russell Grills.

If anyone knows the history behind the Fenner/Albany streets village tree and when it began being strung with Christmas lights, please contact the editor at [email protected].