Good news for Turlockers — the Grinch didn’t steal Christmas Tree Lane.

A miscommunication with a communications company almost saw the lights go out this year on the annual display of holiday cheer in the east Turlock neighborhood known as Christmas Tree Lane, but with a Whovillian effort of cooperation, tragedy was averted.

Residents of Turlock’s Christmas Tree Lane — nearly 40 houses along a quarter-mile loop down Wellerman Way, onto Michael Lane, then in and out of Deanna Court and Teresa Court — woke up Tuesday morning to the sight of several workers along nearby Franks Court digging up sidewalks to install underground fiber optic cable. The workers looked to be making their way towards the Christmas Tree Lane area, something that would have put a definite damper on the attraction that draws hundreds of pedestrians and drivers nightly.

“We were so concerned because they’re going to be digging and we’d have to take down all of our lawn ornaments. The biggest thing was safety. We get thousands of people here in December and we were just so concerned that a child could fall,” said Sue Gomes, one of the residents in the Christmas Tree Lane area.

“It’s just the saddest thing I’ve ever seen, because we’ve lived here for 34 years and (Christmas Tree Lane) was going on even before we bought our house. And to have this happen…I don’t know what the city thinks they’re doing.”

Gomes and other residents promptly called the City of Turlock and their council member to get answers as there was no notification of the construction. The City of Turlock Engineering Department said that a permit was issued to Race Communications for the installation of the underground cable, but the company was responsible for the construction timeline.

For most of Tuesday, Christmas Tree Lane residents — and the Journal — had trouble getting information from Race Communications, a telecommunications and fiber technology company based out of San Francisco. But after several complaints and dozens of comments on social media sites, the city contacted Race Communications who then agreed to postpone any work being done on the area of Christmas Tree Lane until after the new year.

“I think they understood that it was one of our most cherished traditions, and they assured us that they were not going to go and work in (the area of Christmas Tree Lane),” said Christopher Fisher, the city’s Municipal Services Director.

“At Race Communications, we pride ourselves on being good neighbors in all the communities we serve across California. Tuesday, we were made aware of concerns regarding our construction near the Christmas Tree Lane area in Turlock. In the spirit of the holiday season, as soon as we learned of the problem, we worked with our sub-contractors to pause construction in this area until after the new year so the people of Turlock can enjoy this cherished holiday tradition without disruption… We appreciate the community's patience as we complete this important infrastructure work,” said Kaitlin Colston, Vice President, Sales & Marketing for Race Communications.

Gomes was overjoyed at the news late Tuesday that Christmas Tree Lane could remain open.

“I hope everyone knows that we’re still open and to come on down and see the lights,” she said.