Santa Maria prepares for return of annual Downtown Christmas Parade of Lights
SANTA MARIA, Calif. – The City of Santa Maria released the details on road closures and event times for the upcoming Downtown Christmas Parade of Lights on Saturday.
The city issued the following press release:
Downtown Santa Maria will see road closures and traffic detours Saturday afternoon and night, December 2nd, due to the annual Christmas Parade of Lights.
The parade is scheduled to start at 5:20 p.m. at the corner of Stowell Road and Broadway.
From 2:00 to 10:00 p.m., Broadway (State Route 135) will be closed to traffic from Enos Drive north to Main Street (State Route 166).
Also, Stowell Road from Broadway to Depot Street will be closed starting at 3:00 p.m. to allow parade entrants to queue up and make final preparations.
Signage will be in place notifying the public of this road closure. In case of emergency, City of Santa Maria Police Officers will be posted at Cook and Jones streets to allow crossing of Broadway.
The Parade of Lights is presented by the Rotary Clubs of Santa Maria and Nipomo. A map of the parade route and sponsors is at https://smparadeoflights.org.
Starting at 4:30 p.m. Friday, December 1st, the public is invited to attend the Community Christmas Tree Lighting Ceremony at the Santa Maria City Hall Courtyard, corner of Cook Street and Broadway. Take a picture with Santa, sing Christmas carols with the Coastal Voices, enjoy cocoa and cookies, and there will be crafts for kids.
People attending the tree-lighting ceremony near City Hall are advised to park at the Civic Center parking structure near the Public Library along South McClelland Street, or at the Santa Maria Town Center East (mall) parking structure.
News Channel 3-12 will provide live coverage of the event. The parade can be seen live on Your News Channel or online through the special event livestream page.
