At 11:15 on a Wednesday morning last November, the Lake Havasu City Parks Department began cutting down the community tree in Wheeler Park. By 12:24 p.m. it was down. RiverScene Magazine reported that some people in the small crowd picked up a few pinecones, tears in their eyes, just before the cut. City staff posed with a McCulloch chainsaw and a ribbon.
That tree had anchored the city's holidays since 1979. This year, for the first time, the Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony is held somewhere else. It moves to Main Street Commons, the new downtown park at McCulloch Boulevard and Querio Drive. The move changes the shape of the whole season. Lake Havasu City's December now runs from two centers. One is a downtown park built for gatherings on McCulloch. The other is the stretch of waterfront around the London Bridge that has always hosted the boats and the lights.
The Tree That Started in 1979
The tradition began one year after the city incorporated. According to the city's October 2025 release, republished by The Bee, Ed Frederico brought the first community holiday tree to Wheeler Park at 1801 McCulloch Blvd. N. With help from his friend Jim Carr, the tree was trucked in from Phoenix, planted in the park and became the centerpiece of Lake Havasu City's first holiday celebration. Over four decades it grew into a living landmark that gave the park shade as well as Christmas lights.
By 2025 the tree had reached the end of its natural life. The city held a Farewell Tree Ceremony on November 5, 2025, and Mayor Cal Sheehy thanked the Parks Department for caring for the tree for 45 years. The final Wheeler Park lighting followed on November 30, 2025, when a 50-foot LED tree was lit at 6 p.m.
Wheeler Park keeps a tree. The city said the Havasu Pioneers would donate and plant a living replacement, and that a tree at Wheeler Park would still be decorated and lit every holiday season. Pieces of the old tree are being kept too. Parks and Recreation Director Gabby Vera told RiverScene:
"We are going to create plaques with pieces from the tree. We are planning to place one at City Hall and the Aquatic Center and then for families who have ties to the tree."
So the old tree stays in the park in spirit, while the ceremony moves downtown.
A Downtown Park Built for Exactly This
Main Street Commons was not picked for the tree lighting at the last minute. For years the site was called the Downtown Catalyst site. When Mayor Sheehy announced its permanent name, he joked that "It's only been eight years in the making," as Today's News-Herald reported. Residents chose the name by vote, after more than 400 submissions were narrowed to eight finalists. "Commons" was meant as an English touch that links the park to the London Bridge and English Village.
The first phase was planned as a concrete circle, four shade structures and large lawns. The park was meant from the start as a gathering space for Main Street events such as First Friday. Go Lake Havasu committed $200,000 toward a concession stand in a later phase. Moving the city's oldest holiday ritual here puts the tree lighting where downtown already gathers on McCulloch. The city announces the ceremony details through its own releases, as it did for the 2025 lighting.
The McCulloch Calendar
With the tree lighting downtown, McCulloch Boulevard now carries a holiday calendar of its own. Several of these events sit within a few blocks of the Commons:
- Havasu Christmas Craft & Gift Show, November 14–15. Held at Main Street Commons, 2112 McCulloch Blvd. N., with a 9 a.m. start. Go Lake Havasu's listing describes local vendors and artisans, holiday merchandise, seasonal treats and family activities.
- Elkettes Holiday Craft Fair, November 14. Opens at 9 a.m. at 3532 McCulloch Blvd. N., the same morning as the Commons show.
- Youth Market, November 22. Opens at 9 a.m. at 2144 McCulloch Blvd. N., according to RiverScene's November calendar.
- First Friday, December 4. Runs 6 to 9 p.m. at the Commons and is free. The stage hosts local bands, the bar serves local brews, wine, cocktails and seltzers, and artists sell handmade goods inside the Commons and at the "Neighborhubs" along McCulloch, per Go Lake Havasu.
- Holiday Tree Lighting Ceremony. Its first year at Main Street Commons.
The craft show and the Elkettes fair open at the same hour on the same street on November 14. One Saturday morning on McCulloch covers both.
The Channel Calendar
The waterfront half of the season stays where it has always been, around the London Bridge, English Village and London Bridge Resort. All but one of its events start at 5 p.m. or later:
- O' Christmas Tree, November 22, 1 to 5 p.m. A Women with Willpower fundraiser with tree and wreath auctions at the London Bridge Resort Convention Center, 1477 Queens Bay. Regular tickets are $80 and VIP tickets are $100, according to RiverScene.
- Festival of Lights, November 27, 6 p.m. The night after Thanksgiving at English Village. Go Lake Havasu describes the lighting of the village, with a swim race at dusk.
- 12 Days of Christmas, December 2–23. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 5 to 8 p.m., at London Bridge Resort's Kokomo Backyard. The lineup includes Santa and Mrs. Claus, the Grinch, s'mores, letters to Santa, ice skating, food vendors and a light show, as RiverScene lists it.
- Dock Glow Night, December 11. At London Bridge Resort, where the decorated boats can be seen up close, with Christmas activities and visits with Santa and Mrs. Claus.
- Boat Parade of Lights, December 12, 6 p.m. The Lake Havasu City Anderson Auto and Powersports Boat Parade of Lights runs through the Bridgewater Channel under the London Bridge. JJ Gibbs organizes it, per RiverScene, and Go Lake Havasu notes that viewing is free.
Dock Glow and the parade fall on back-to-back nights. The boats seen at the docks on Friday are the same boats that run the Channel on Saturday.
Where the Two Calendars Meet
The downtown events mostly open in the morning or on First Friday evening, and most waterfront events start at 5 p.m. or later. A few dates use both:
- Sunday, November 22. The Youth Market opens on McCulloch at 9 a.m., and O' Christmas Tree starts at London Bridge Resort at 1 p.m. The morning is downtown and the afternoon is at the resort.
- Friday, December 4, and the weekend of December 11–12. First Friday is the season's big downtown evening. The waterfront's biggest weekend comes one week later.
- Wednesdays through Saturdays in December. The 12 Days of Christmas program at Kokomo Backyard runs on those evenings through December 23, so it can fill the nights around any downtown date.
Wheeler Park, at 1801 McCulloch Blvd. N., no longer hosts the ceremony. The city has said a tree there will still be decorated and lit each holiday season, in the park where Ed Frederico's tradition began.
Winterfest is not part of this stretch. The Lake Havasu Area Chamber of Commerce hosts it on McCulloch Boulevard on February 6–7, 2027, according to Go Lake Havasu. Go Lake Havasu notes that its calendar listings can change without notice, so check the organizer's page before heading out.
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