The holidays have arrived

In many suburban areas of Southern California the only way to tell that the holiday season has arrived is by plastic trees decorated in gold and red or by big signs that read “Happy Holidays.” But in Montrose, the holiday arrives not in plastic but in millions of tiny sparkling lights that surround the live trees and bushes that line Honolulu Avenue.

Having earned its designation as the city of Glendale’s historical “Old Town,” the Montrose Shopping Park Association works hard to bring community members an idyllic holiday season reminiscent of the past.

“We really use this time of year to bring back the nostalgic [holiday experience],” said Dale Dawson, president of the association and owner of Mountain Rose.

He added that Montrose merchants want to give shoppers an alternative to the mall by making holiday gift-buying an event instead of a chore.

“We have a horse-drawn trolley every Saturday and Sunday,” Dawson said.

The trolley runs on Saturdays from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. and on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Then, from Dec. 20-24, the trolley will be in town everyday. Shoppers will also be entertained with music from the Martini Kings and from a harpist.

“We also have Heavenly Hand-led Ponies on the weekend,” Dawson said, “a petting zoo every Sunday at our Harvest Market and, of course, Santa Claus will be strolling down the street, too.”

The trolley, musicians and Santa’s visits are all paid for by the merchants, making it free for visitors.

Although Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving, is known as the kick-off of the holiday season, those in the community know the real kick-off is the Montrose Christmas Parade, which takes place Saturday evening.

For the 32nd year the Annual Montrose Christmas Parade will roll down Honolulu Avenue. This year Supervisor Michael Antonovich has been chosen as the parade’s grand marshal.

“He’s a Glendale resident and he really watches out for this community,” said Steve Pierce, of the Montrose Christmas Parade Association and the chair for this year’s event.

“It was great the way [Antonovich] found out he had been chosen,” Pierce said.