COVID DIMS RIVERSIDE’S FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS

Scaled-down display, no vendors or rides this year

RIVERSIDE

The famed “Festival of Lights” in downtown Riverside is being drastically scaled down this year because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The nightly festival, which usually beg ins the day after Thanksg iving, features the century-old Mission Inn Hotel & Spa bathed in multi-colored hues, with some 400 animated characters — including elves, toy soldiers, nutcrackers and angels — visible on banisters, balconies and ledges.

The dazzling display is normally made up of about 5.5 million lights, but this year the number of lights is only a third to half as many as shined last year, Shannon Walters, the Mission Inn’s vice president of sales and marketing told The Press-Enterprise.

“It’s not the same festival that they experienced in years prior,” she said.

Also missing are the vendors, attractions and programming that the 750,000 people who attend the festival are accustomed to.

The Riverside City Council voted in Aug ust to limit city funding for the six-week event to $60,000. It has generally received between $378,000 and $825,000 in recent years.

“The lower-cost model for the 2020 festival includes some holiday decor in the area around the Mission Inn, including holiday-themed self ie stations, three holiday trees, large ornaments, a sleigh, bows and garland on lights and bridges, and an assor tment of holiday-themed light displays, in addition to the lights that are placed on the Mission Inn,” according to a city statement.

But the reduced funding means there will not be carnival rides, an ice skating rink or children’s enter tainment, such as bounce houses, at this year ’s festival.

The festival — in its 28th year — will run through Jan. 6, but Mission Inn off icials are urg ing attendees to wear face coverings and obser ve social distancing.

“Pending any changes due to COVID-19 g uidelines, the public will not be permitted to walk down the main walkways this year to avoid crowds of any size,” the hotel posted on its website.

Only hotel g uests and those with restaurant reser vations will be allowed inside the Inn.