Holiday tree program to light up Littleton’s Main Street - Littleton Independent

Oct 28, 2024

With many Littleton residents still mourning the loss of the trees on Main Street last year, a group of downtown leaders has devised a plan to bring a festive forest to town this holiday season.

The Littleton Downtown Development Authority will install and light up evergreen trees in planters along Main Street beginning mid-November through much of January. The goal is to bring back some of the festive spirit formerly created by the holiday lights on downtown trees that were removed in 2023 due to disease.

“It was a tradition,” said Krista Falkenstine, a member of the Littleton DDA and local business owner who pitched the tree program idea. “The part of Littleton that is a small town loves traditions — and outside of Littleton … (People) would come every year from Denver, from Englewood, from Commerce City, to see the downtown lights in Littleton.”

The Littleton DDA is working with local landscaping company Designs by Sundown to purchase, install and maintain 34 trees lining Main Street, Falkenstine said. Each tree will be about five or six feet tall, according to the city’s website.

“We hear a lot about the devastation of the loss of trees, and so I think everybody was trying to think of a creative way … to help light downtown up again,” said Littleton DDA Executive Director Jenny Starkey.

Starkey said the ambiance of the former downtown treescape won’t be fully replicated until new trees are planted someday, but she hopes the temporary holiday tree program can show the community that the Littleton DDA cares about having a vibrant downtown area.

A permanent plan for streetscaping downtown Littleton, including planting new trees, will be part of the city’s long-term Project Downtown plan to redesign downtown Littleton. This plan is in the conceptual stage and will be discussed at an upcoming open house on Oct. 28.

Starkey said the Littleton DDA plans to decorate some of the trees with lights, and others may be decorated in other ways due to electrical limitations. Signage at each tree will designate the tree’s sponsor. Some community members sponsored trees in memory of a lost loved one, and that will be on the signage, too.

At the end of the holiday season, the trees will be moved and planted in permanent locations around the city. Sponsors will get to choose to plant their tree on their own property or donate it to Arapahoe Community College or the City of Littleton to be planted for public enjoyment, Starkey said.

Falkenstine said she wanted to create a sustainable program that would contribute to the city’s canopy instead of using artificial trees that would end up in a landfill.

“We’re all trying to be greener and more sustainable, and that was a big priority,” she said.

The Littleton DDA worked with the city’s forestry department to select trees that will work well when planted after the holiday season. These include Austrian pines, white firs, Douglas firs and blue spruces.

Former City Forester Mary Danser said Littleton has a goal to increase its overall canopy at a rate of five percent every 10 years, and this program will contribute to that goal.

“We cannot meet those goals without prioritizing new tree plantings and current tree preservation,” she said. “I hope this program through the Littleton DDA serves as a reminder to the public that planting trees today impacts the sustainability of the city in the future.”

The Littleton DDA surpassed its $10,000 sponsorship goal for the program, raising about $22,000 from sponsors and partners, Starkey said.

The Littleton DDA also contributed $25,000 from its budget and received about $25,000 in grants to support the program, including from a local foundation, Starkey said. She said the program was budgeted to cost about $65,000 excluding lights, and the extra funds will be used to cover lighting and decorations.

Falkenstine said she is hopeful the trees and lights will be beautiful and will maintain the city’s tradition. She also said she hopes the program shows the Littleton community that the Littleton DDA cares about their needs.

Starkey said she is grateful for the community’s embrace of the program, especially as the Littleton DDA is still pretty new to the community in its second year of operation.

“The community asked for something, and we were able to deliver with a really unique and creative idea,” she said. “To see the community wrap its arms around this program — which is really our first big community type of program — has just been really the most exciting result of this entire thing.”

More: The deadline has passed to sponsor a tree, but anyone interested in supporting the program in other ways can reach out to the Littleton DDA at [email protected].