Arlington Heights lights up for the holidays

The Arlington Heights Special Events Commission and the Arlington Heights Park District kicked off the village’s holiday season in style Friday with its festive tree-lighting event.

The annual gathering in North School Park included a performance from the park district’s Vibe Dance Group, singing courtesy of the Hersey School Dickens Carolers and a food truck selling hot chocolate and treats.

Arlington Heights Mayor Jim Tinaglia welcomed guests before a countdown to lighting the tree and other holiday displays adorned with 150,000 thousand lights.

“This is a beautiful, beautiful night and I couldn’t imagine it any better. Thank you to everyone for being here. This is a big crowd on a big Bears night,” Tinagli said.

“This is a lot of work to make this happen. But it all gets done because we have an enormous amount of horsepower with a lot of great, dedicated staff members and volunteers that get it done,” he added.

More festival fun took place at Harmony Park downtown, featuring the Rolling Meadows High School madrigal singers, ice carving, live reindeer and photo stations. Trolleys operated between the two parks with Dickens-era characters sharing stories about Arlington Heights.