by Nicole Bradford
Independence Park will be the place to be next weekend, Dec. 1-2, when the annual Hometown Christmas Festival and Parade unfolds in Pearland.
Admission to both events, coordinated by the city’s Parks and Recreation Department, are free.
Live entertainment, a holiday vendor market, a lights display, food trucks, and more make up the Hometown Christmas Festival, scheduled from 6 to 9 p.m. Dec. 1 at the park, 3449 Pearland Parkway.
Lone Star Recreation, Texas Emergency Care, Frontier Waste, and The Diane Villareal Jenkins Family sponsor lighting displays. They will remain free for the community nightly from 6 to 9 p.m. until Dec. 31.
Over 100 vendors are signed on for Blitzen’s Market, to be held in the park pavilion during the Friday festival and from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Dec. 2.
The 41st annual Hometown Christmas Parade is scheduled for 6 p.m. the next day, Saturday, Dec. 2. Parade parking will be available at Pearland High School, 3775 S. Main, with ADA parking at the Independence Park Liberty Drive entrance.
The parade will travel down FM 518 from Old Alvin Road to Pearland Parkway. The evening ends with a fireworks show at approximately 9 p.m.
The city had researched doing a “drone show” at the festival instead of fireworks, but that won’t happen this year.
City leaders recently discussed the possibility, acknowledging that fireworks may prevent some veterans and those with special needs from attending.
For more information about our events, plus a full calendar of public holiday events around Pearland in December, visit pearlandparks.com/hometownchristmas.
