Crown City Network

By Anna Buss, CCN Writer | [email protected].| @annaCCN

For some 90-plus years, Christmas Tree Lane has brightened up a stretch of Altadena with thousands of colorful lights during the Holidays. This historical tradition — an all-volunteer effort — has already begun for this season, but it’ll be a bit more environmental-friendly this year.

Courtesy photo Christmas Tree Lane Association

The biggest change in the world-renowned Christmas Tree Lane event is the replacement of incandescent light bulbs to LED lamps, and the expansion and upgrading of the electrical distribution system of the area.

The Christmas Tree Lane Association (CTLA), the organization responsible for starting and maintaining this landmark, has started replacing 2,500 large 11.5-Watt clear incandescent lamps with large 2-Watt warm-white LED lamps.

Tony Ward, First Vice President and Lane Foreman for CTLA, explains the advantage of upgrading the lights.

“The benefits of the change are the incandescent glass lamps are becoming less available now, [while] the LEDs more available. The LEDs are much more durable, use much less power and are permanent.”

The goal is to have all 14,000 lights converted from incandescent in the next 5 to 8 years.

Ward says that from the ground the incandescent and LED lamps are indistinguishable.

“The LED’s are heavier, much less fragile as they have polycarbonate lenses, not fragile heat-resistant glass lenses,” he says. “The visual similarities are the lamp bulb-shaped profile and the light output, color and brightness.”

Next year, Ward promises a surprise — a “pleasant improvement to our display.”

Courtesy photo CTLA

Switching to LED is not the only change. CTLA has also been working with Southern California Edison and the Los Angeles County to expand and upgrade the electrical grids and the distribution system.

“This year the County is expanding the electrical distribution system to serve more of the former immature trees,” Ward says.

In fact, the County is working to have the system expanded to serve all the trees as the small ones mature. Once the small trees are large enough to support light strings, they will also get the 2-Watt LED lamps, powered, then, by the County system.

But for now, some of “…the trees are too small to support the big light strings [with the 2-Watt LED lamps],” ward explains.  These immature trees will continue being powered by the residents with small 1-Watt LED lights until the electrical distribution system is in place.

And, in order to prevent “any unforeseen weather disasters,” Ward explains the County crews are also repairing and improving the system. He expects this task to be completed in another year.

Christmas Tree Lane, while modernizing, faces a bigger challenge: to stay alive.

For years, SCE donated the energy to the Lane. However, after SCE filed for bankruptcy in 2000, and the state’s electrical utilities were deregulated that same year, it could no longer support this community event. As a result, the utility company donated the electrical distribution system, which serves the Lane, to the county. With that, Ward explains CTLA entered a new agreement with the County.

“As a condition of accepting the system, the County would accept and put the SCE’s electrical system in a safe condition for the public if the CTLA would continue the lighting tradition, purchase from our membership contributions liability insurance to hold the County harmless from legal suits from CTLA activities carried out in the public right-of-way, and to pay SCE for the power to light the Lane that they had formerly provided for free,” he says.

Today, the liability insurance costs about $900, and the utility bill, $2,400.

The event has been surviving the last decade with membership fees and contributions. Ward says CTLA solicits for the LED conversion fund every fall.

“Support of the community, including volunteering on the Lane and contributing through membership, is the only way CTLA can keep the Lane lighted for many holiday seasons to come,” according to CTLA’s website.

Courtesy photo CTLA

In Fact, earlier this month, about 23 volunteers started installing approximately 1,000 lights into eight of the Deodar trees along Santa Rosa Ave. and Altadena Dr.

The work is not done yet, as 144 other trees, along the one-mile stretch, will be getting 13,000 more lights in the upcoming weeks.

“We will be mainly installing the lights and preparing for the lighting ceremony and Winter Arts and Crafts Festival to be held on December 13^th,” Ward says.

CTLA will be working Saturday and Sunday mornings, from 9 a.m. to noon, until all trees have lights, by December 6^th.

People can still volunteer to help set up the lights from now until Dec. 6^th. CTLA offers Community Service Credit for middle, high school and college students, among other perks.

“We provide hydration, water, hot coffee, hot chocolate, tea and doughnuts and safety gear and environment when working on the Lane. We provide a hot lunch following,” Ward says.

He explains that this event brings neighbors together and people, from as far away as South Carolina, make new friends in the community, in a fun and rewarding experience.

“People are much more aware of the rewards of community service these days,” he says. “There is a rewarding feeling when those lights come on at the lighting ceremony, and one’s hard work has been realized, and the feeling of great accomplishment, ‘I made that happen!’”
CTLA will need volunteers again beginning February 2015 to help take down the lights.

Volunteers working on this project have included homeowners, renters, senior citizens, school children, Altadena veterans and newcomers, according to CTLA’s website.

Courtesy photo CTLA

For more information, contact Christmas Tree Lane Association at (626) 403-1123, or visit www.christmastreelane.net.

Courtesy photo CTLA

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