For Release: October 13, 2022
NaperLights to be Bigger, Brighter and More Magical in Downtown Naperville
Sunrise Rotary Display Will Be a Winter Wonderland on Water Street
Naperville Sunrise Rotary’s NaperLights holiday display will make the season even brighter along Water Street and the south side of the Riverwalk. Families wanting to chat with Santa by the Great Tree on Friday and Saturday evenings beginning December 2nd will get a magic sneak peek at Santa’s Workshop through a special new projection display beamed straight from the North Pole into the windows of the Naperville Municipal Building overlooking Jaycees Park. A giant Christmas Bear will welcome families for the perfect photo opportunity.
Visitors can access the display from the Webster Street covered bridge, Main Street and Webster Street. Strollers can enjoy the outdoors with public parking available in the Water Street and Municipal Center parking decks. Lights on Water Street trees and the Foyo plaza will be synced to music with an enhanced sound system which will project music across the DuPage River, making a drive-through experience for those wishing to stay in their cars as they enjoy Downtown.
The light display, a gift to the community from the Rotary Club of Naperville Sunrise, features 150,000 lights and a growing collection of giant lighted holiday figures including skating polar bears, penguins sliding on an igloo, skaters, snow men, carolers, gifts, baubles, and dancing trees. The Plaza Fountain will be enhanced with dancing skaters and up in the sky high above the Riverwalk, you might just spy Santa and his reindeer flying over the Marquette building and downtown.
Animated lights and music will fill the area with carols synched to the lights, and the colorful arch on Foyo Plaza will be a popular photo spot. Jaycees Park will also feature an interactive lighted Honey Locust Tree which will respond to sounds of clapping, singing or shouting. Student music groups will make occasional weekend appearances to add to the holiday cheer. A tentative schedule will be found on www.naperlights.com.
NaperLights will be illuminated from Thanksgiving weekend through the holiday season. While they last, the popular holographic viewing glasses will be available for kids from Rotary volunteers on weekends. Free-will donations to support Naperville Sunrise Rotary local and international charitable projects are welcomed.
“Water Street is thrilled to be partnering with the Sunrise Rotary Club again to continue this popular family tradition. We were the first sponsors of the event years ago, so hosting on Water Street, where visitors can enjoy it every night through the holidays is awesome,” says Nick Ryan, CEO of Marquette Companies. “We think families with relatives staying at Hotel Indigo will be delighted, and the spa, shops and restaurants on Water Street are eager to welcome you.”
NaperLights is sponsored in part by a grant from the SECA Fund. Marquette Companies and Ryan Hill Group are lead sponsors along with Naperville Bank & Trust and Gerald Cares. Technical expertise and electrical manpower is provided by IBEW Local 701 and Power Forward DuPage.
For more information for Naper Lights 2022 visit www.naperlights.com. For more information on Water Street holiday plans visit www.waterstreetnaperville.com or visit the Water Street facebook page.