FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Fresno’s Christmas Tree Lane is suspending this year’s walk nights.

“The popularity and growth of these two Walk Nights has taken on a life of their own and has made it nearly impossible for our small group to put on in a way that ensures the safety of the 35,000 people who attend, and that of our neighborhood,” the organization said in the post.

“Safety is our utmost concern and responsibility, and the size of these events has become too large to manage effectively. To provide and ensure a safe Walk Night experience, our small group would need to transfer these nights to a larger organization better suited to running this event.”

Christmas Tree Lane will be celebrating its 103rd year and is finalizing this year’s dates with Fresno Police.

Read the full article here:

https://abc30.com/post/fresno-christmas-tree-lane-walk-nights-suspended-year/17590585/

FRESNO, Calif. (KGPE/KSEE) – Be sure to put on your walking shoes, warm clothes, blankets, and hot cocoa ready, as Christmas Tree Lane announced on Thursday, “walk only” nights are returning on Dec. 2.

Since 1920, homes along Van Ness Avenue have been decked out with Christmas lights and decorations every Christmas season.

Read the full article here:

https://www.yourcentralvalley.com/news/local-news/christmas-tree-lane-returns-walk-only-nights-in-fresno/?fbclid=IwAR3uPxmI3JMtohisIVdIM5ai9od7zBmFKex4G2CMrkbC3XA4FbcZDiJ73eE

FRESNO, Calif. — …The Pratts sent 150 living pieces of the “First Tree” to the nursery, with hopes that they would grow into baby trees. Along the way, some were lost, but most survived. Today 100 juvenile deodar cedars from that batch are being monitored at Belmont Nursery in Fresno. All are genetically-identical to the “First Tree.”

Read the full story:

https://www.kvpr.org/community/2022-12-20/how-the-dying-first-tree-of-fresnos-christmas-tree-lane-is-helping-save-the-tradition

A caravan of classic cars took the inaugural trip down Christmas Tree Lane on Thursday night amid a steady rainfall, kicking off the 100th year of the Fresno tradition.

Organizers of the annual event extended the invitation to several car clubs in the area and had anticipated more than 50 cars to start the holiday season, which now runs 6 p.m. nightly through Christmas.

Full story:

https://www.aol.com/christmas-tree-lane-opens-100th-053934021.html

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Rain or Shine, one of Fresno’s oldest holiday traditions kicked off Thursday night. Christmas Tree Lane returned for the 100th year on Van Ness Avenue. The rainy weather did not put a damper on the tradition. Classic cars made their way down the lane to celebrate the 100th year.

Read the full story:

https://abc30.com/christmas-tree-lane-holiday-tradition-anniversary/12517174/

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) — Homeowners in Fig Garden tell Action News they’re canceling the walk nights on Christmas Tree Lane this year.

The decision this week came partly because of concerns over COVID.

2022 is the 100th year homeowners will decorate the long stretch of Van Ness Avenue for the holidays.

But COVID forced them to cancel the popular walk nights in 2020 and they haven’t returned since.

Seven people who attended a homeowner’s association meeting Wednesday night tell us the group decided to not allow walkers in 2022.

They were concerned that they couldn’t strictly follow and enforce CDC COVID recommendations for an event with thousands of people, so they might be open to lawsuits.

Dean Alexander, who does a lot of the prep work for Christmas Tree Lane, tells us they’re still exploring avenues to bring back walk nights.

https://abc30.com/christmas-tree-lane-walk-nights-fig-garden-lights/12120533/

Christmas Tree Lane Walk-only Nights are classified by the California Department of Public Health (CDPH) as an Outdoor Mega Event. An Outdoor Mega Event is where more than 10,000 people are in attendance. Christmas Tree Lane Walk-only Nights typically have 25,000 to 35,000 people attending each night. For Outdoor Mega Events, CDPH highly recommends that attendees provide proof they are fully vaccinated, or have received a negative COVID-19 test. CDPH also recommends attendees follow CDPH guidance for face coverings. CDPH also specifies for Outdoor Mega Events that venues should make masks available to attendees upon request. Lastly, CDPH specifies information about these recommendations be communicated to attendees prior to attending the event.  

The Christmas Tree Lane event is produced by the Fig Garden Homeowner Association (FGHOA).  Christmas Tree Lane has 23 cross streets and 40 points of entry.  During the walk-only nights, every cross street is used to access The Lane.  The FGHOA does not have the resources to verify that attendees have been vaccinated or have a negative test result.

Since we cannot comply with the recommendations of the CDPH for an Outdoor Mega Event, we deeply regret that we cannot have Christmas Tree Lane Walk-only Nights this year.

Christmas Tree Lane will be open this year to vehicle traffic.  We will open on December 1^st and our final night will be Christmas Day.

Organizers met with Fresno authorities and decided it would be too difficult to maintain social distancing during walk nights.

Fresno’s historic Christmas Tree Lane is set to open on December 1 this year, but there will be no walk nights. Every Christmas season, more than 100 homes and 300 Christmas trees along the stretch of Van Ness Blvd between Shields and Shaw Avenues are decked up with festive lights and decorations, attracting visitors from around the Central Valley. But this year, the traditional Walk-Only Nights during which the street is blocked to vehicles and people experience the sights on foot, will not be held due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Read the rest of the story on ABC30’s website.