Some of the town’s most impressive holiday splendor is currently on display as part of the City of Turlock’s annual Holiday Lights Tour, and community members can check out the best of the best after the competition’s winners were announced on Tuesday.
This is the second year the city-wide Christmas light contest was held, and the event first began last year as the pandemic put a stop to most of Turlock’s holiday happenings. Homes, neighborhoods and businesses are able to participate by registering with the City, competing to earn bragging rights as the best-lit in their category.
City Councilmember Nicole Larson thought of creating the competition last year after she noticed nearby communities doing something similar for Halloween. This year’s contest featured 26 registered homes, eight neighborhoods and one business entity, the Rock’n Christmas Light Show hosted by The Rock Church at the Fairgrounds.
“The Turlock community continues to amaze me. Last year this was an alternative idea, simply trying to create some holiday cheer during the worst of the pandemic,” Larson said. “Now, we’ve seen our community embrace a new holiday tradition with the participants and staff making it bigger and better each year.”
The concept is simple: participants register their holiday-decorated home, neighborhood or organization under the correct category on the City website. Lights needed to be up by Dec. 6, and judging took place from Dec. 15 through 17. The community is able to access a map on the City’s webpage that identifies the participating locations.
The Rock Church’s light show was the uncontested winner for each title in the business category. In the home category, 2450 Oxford Ave. won Best Lights and 2200 Oak Crest Dr. took home Best Holiday Decor and Best Overall. When it came to registered neighborhoods, Best Holiday Decor went to Merchant Lane, while Best Lights and Best Overall was earned by homes in Zephyr Court.
Community members celebrating Christmas this weekend can partake in the holiday cheer by driving through the Turlock Holiday Lights Tour. To view the full map of participants, visit www.cityofturlock.org/holidaylightstour
http://www.cityofturlock.org/holidaylightstour
.
