Almost ‘WOW:’
A downtown Christmas lighting story
“Wow” is probably the most overused word in the English language.
However, there are times when it is appropriate.
As a young boy, when I stood and looked out at the Galleria Mall in Houston, my first word was, “Wow!” and last night when I was in downtown El Dorado, and looked at the Courthouse, and all the red and green lighted buildings around the Square, it was almost a “Wow!” moment.
But how did we get to where we are today, and what do we need to do in order to get a legitimate “Wow”?
Let’s look back to the mid1960s to start our journey.
Downtown El Dorado was losing retail businesses, which begin moving to one of the gateway streets in town, North West Avenue, and then it accelerated when Mellor Park Mall opened. It was a time of downtown retail contraction from the booming 50s, and as downtown businesses closed, a committee was formed to counter the loss and return the downtown to the prosperous 1950s.
The recommendations that came from a national research firm followed a trend set in Little Rock and Memphis along with numerous other towns to create a downtown shopping experience similar to the European pedestrian-only shopping streets.
The Courthouse Square was circled by arches, made pedestrian only, and a parking lot was added behind First Baptist Church. A fountain was constructed in the middle of Washington Avenue, and with great fanfare, Union Square opened.
However, after Union Square was open for a few years, the store occupancy steadily dropped until in the early 1970s it was less than 25%. It was obvious the concept was a failure, and in the mid-70s the archways were removed and the one-way streets were eliminated..
In the mid-1970s, Christmas decorations in downtown El Dorado could be described in one word: Pitiful. As businesses returned, Main Street El Dorado was formed, the Downtown Business Association became active, and there was a push to add Christmas decorations to the Downtown.
The Chamber of Commerce initially declined to support the drive for decorations, but when Vertis Mason raised over $25,000 in one day, the Chamber, city, county and all of the downtown associations got together and hired a design firm from Oklahoma City to build and oversee a commitment to light the Courthouse and other prominent buildings in the downtown area.
Because the Courthouse is such a large building, they recommended big C-9 red and green bulbs, and to make a greater impact, they recommended all of the downtown buildings follow suite with red and green bulbs. The resulting lighting display, especially the Courthouse centerpiece, is spectacular!
However, as more and more businesses in the downtown area added red and green lighting displays it steadily moved up in the “Wow” category. This year, we salute some of the major downtown buildings whose owners deserve extra credit.
They include the Murphy Oil building, the Murphy USA building, the Union building, Alice Sidney Oil Corp and the First Financial Bank building. We have also seen more and more property owners add red and green lights to awnings and on the tops of their buildings.
A special mention goes to Off The Rails Cafe, which added the Santa and Reindeer display on the top of the caboose.
The City of El Dorado’s lighting of the Courthouse street planters, and of course the red and green poinsettias on street light poles on the viaduct, along with El Dorado’s City Hall and the main Fire Station is a real plus.
Every light pole around the Square is wrapped with garland and red and green bulbs with a couple of speakers on each block playing Christmas music. It’s hard to get
more Christmas-y than that.
A special mention goes to Teresa Gates, known as the “Bulb Lady,” who does the ordering of red and green bulbs to replace old cords, and encourages property owners to do their awning and building’s rooflines with red and green bulbs. This year we have some great additions with red and green bulbs now extending east down Main Street and new lighting on the Elm Street buildings, the Schuler and Cedar Street buildings.
Property owner Buddy McAdams gets a gold star for lighting his buildings with over 1,000 red and green bulbs, and Greg and Kellie Harrison’s new lighted nativity on the top of their building looks outstanding.
The downtown Christmas lights are the best ever this year, and as we look back to where we started, it really is amazing that we have come this far. Do you think we would have had a Christmas Lighting Ceremony in the 1970s? Of course not!
However, we haven’t reached our potential yet, but we are really closing in on a true “Wow.” Looking ahead, I see several adjacent buildings we can add to make our downtown a true “Wow.”
The downtown lighting group will be working with MAD and the new Haywood Hotel to help them be part of the downtown Christmas lighting. After all, the success of the Christmas lighting will be a direct benefit to both MAD and the Haywood.
The overall lighting display will gain in prominence and as we reach the true “Wow!” point, our downtown will become a destination. The more visitors we have, the more benefits both the downtown and the MAD complex will have. Downtown El Dorado, MAD, and the Haywood are linked together by proximity, and what benefits one benefits them all.
This season’s Christmas lighting of our downtown is without a doubt the most successful ever… but next year can be better just as this years was better than previous years.
Let’s just dream a bit, and think of what our downtown would look like if every awning and every building was outlined with red and green lights.
Of course, Christmas lighting is not all the season is about, but it is a part of a very special time of year, and that season is based on the Spirit of Christmas. Since that is the case, shouldn’t everything we do be focused on making every part of the Christmas celebration the best it can be? We are all part of Christmas, and every bulb added and every Christmas carol sung combine to make an El Dorado Christmas the best ever.
I think it is obvious that although we light Christmas trees and give presents to celebrate the season, Christmas is also a time for families to come together, and as we anticipate Christmas, the music, presents and the Spirit of a true Christmas it is all an integrated celebration. We look forward to not only this Christmas celebration of the Lord’s birthday, but to use every part of the celebration to announce His birth.
Next Christmas, with MAD and the Haywood joining the downtown, the last few remaining awnings with red and green bulbs, and every downtown building lined in red and green bulbs, we and all those visitors who have heard of our gorgeous Christmas lights can drive to the Courthouse Square, and as they look out at a sea of red and green lights, as Santa pushes the button to light the courthouse, and as a choir sings Christmas carols, we and our visitors can say “WOW!”