West Linn's Tree Lighting Is Leaving City Hall. The Whole Holiday Season Is Moving to Willamette Falls Drive.

"This year, we will not be hosting our Holiday Tree Lighting & Community Celebration." That line sits near the top of West Linn Parks & Recreation's 2026 Holiday Parade page. Read alone, it sounds like a cancellation. The next sentence explains it. The city is merging its parade with the Historic Willamette Main Street Holiday Tree Lighting "to create one bigger, more festive holiday event for our community."

So this year Santa won't be at City Hall. After the parade, he'll walk to the front of the Ale & Cider House at 1720 Willamette Falls Drive and light the tree there.

It's a small change on a city web page, and it has a big effect on the season. From Halloween through mid-December, almost every community event West Linn has on the calendar now takes place on the same few blocks of Historic Willamette.

Same night, same hour, different hill

The tree lighting itself hasn't changed much. The place has. Here's how 2025 and 2026 compare:

• 2025: West Linn Parks & Recreation's 24th Annual Holiday Tree Lighting and Community Celebration took place Friday, Dec. 5, at West Linn City Hall, 22500 Salamo Road. Santa lit the tree at 6 p.m., with photos with Santa, carolers, cookies, cocoa and candy canes, according to the Kids Out and About Portland listing.
• 2026: Historic Willamette Main Street lights the tree on Saturday, Dec. 5, at 6 p.m. outside the Ale & Cider House, right after the city's 5 p.m. parade through the Historic Willamette Main Street area.

The date and the time are the same. What's gone is the city's own standalone event, after 24 years in a row. For families who went up Salamo Road every December, the evening now happens downtown by the river, and the parade is part of it.

Two organizations, one evening

The city didn't give any reason for the change beyond what's on the parade page. Here's the full rationale as Parks & Recreation wrote it:

By combining these beloved traditions, we hope to create an even more memorable celebration filled with holiday cheer, community connection, and fun for everyone. We can't wait to celebrate the season with you in Historic Willamette!

The page doesn't mention budget, staffing or the venue. Two different groups run the evening. The parade, themed "Light Up the Night," belongs to the city. The tree belongs to Historic Willamette Main Street, a nonprofit based at 1754 Knapps Alley that works to support the business district and preserve the Willamette neighborhood's character and history.

That nonprofit already runs most of the rest of the season, so the city's move puts its biggest public night on a street that was hosting the other events anyway.

The season, in order, on one street

Here's what's on the calendar from now through mid-December. Except for the bazaar, every event is in or right next to Historic Willamette.

1. Carriage Way Cemetery, every October evening, 6 to 9 p.m. Matt Knowles' do-it-yourself haunted house and trail display, featured in the West Linn Tidings on Oct. 16, runs through the end of the month.
2. Halloween in Willamette, Saturday, Oct. 31, 3 to 6 p.m. Businesses in the district hand out treats to kids, and there's a scavenger hunt and a photo booth. Event details here.
3. Holiday Bazaar, Nov. 14 and 15, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. This is the one exception. The free Parks & Recreation bazaar fills the Adult Community Center with more than 40 local vendors.
4. Small Business Saturday, Nov. 28. It's on the Historic Willamette calendar.
5. Holiday Parade and Main Street Tree Lighting, Saturday, Dec. 5. The parade starts at 5 p.m. and the tree is lit at 6 p.m. outside the Ale & Cider House.
6. Winter in Willamette Holiday Market, Saturday, Dec. 12, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The annual market comes with a scavenger hunt, and the winners of the business and organization Holiday Wreath Contest are announced at 3 p.m. The event page still says more details are coming, so check it again closer to the date.

One event fell off the list. The Willamette Brews & Spirits Stroll, presented by Les Schwab West Linn, was planned for Nov. 7 from 3 to 7 p.m. It would have paired local breweries and distilleries with neighborhood businesses as a fundraiser for Historic Willamette Main Street. The nonprofit has postponed this first stroll until 2027. The main calendar may still show Nov. 7, but the event's own page has the current status.

The district hosts something on Oct. 31, Nov. 28, Dec. 5 and Dec. 12. If you live near Willamette Falls Drive, those are the Saturdays you'll be sharing the street with a crowd.

Planning around Dec. 5

The combined evening packs a parade and a tree lighting into one hour on one stretch of road, so a little planning helps.

The city says Willamette Falls Drive will be closed from 4 to 6 p.m. for the parade. The parade starts at 5 p.m. The tree lighting is set for 6 p.m., and the city notes it may start later if the parade runs long. If you're coming from Salamo Road or anywhere else up the hill, you're now heading down toward the river in the dark in early December. The city's parade page has the route, parking information and an FAQ, and it's worth reading before you go.

If you were planning to join the parade instead of watching, the same page has the entry application and a volunteer form.

Before or after, Highway 43 has two new tables

The district has the events. Willamette Drive picked up two new places to eat this fall, so you've got more options for dinner before or after the parade.

Nuevo Mazatlan had its grand opening Oct. 7 at 18740 Willamette Drive, Suite 200, where Bugatti's used to be. According to the West Linn Tidings, it's open daily from 11 a.m. to 10 p.m., with lunch combos until 3:30 p.m.

Fast Times Pizza opened Sept. 17 in the old Backyard Burgers building next to Kartcade on Highway 43. The Tidings reported that it has a full bar plus pinball and arcade games, which makes it an easy stop for a family coming back from the parade.

The other thing to plan around on that side of town is construction. The I-205 corridor project update from Oct. 16 says crews are still working on West Linn's side of the Abernethy Bridge and on OR 43. Nighttime closures and noisy work after midnight have been part of the schedule. The West Bridge Trail is open but may have short delays and flaggers, and the Jon Storm Park parking lot stays closed during construction. If you usually park at Jon Storm for a river walk before an evening downtown, you'll need another plan for now.

The river side moves on a slower clock

The street side of Historic Willamette changes week to week. The waterfront below it changes over years.

On Oct. 1, the Metro Council approved $392,400 for the first phase of West Linn's Waterfront Vision Plan, according to Metro's announcement. As The Oregonian reported on Oct. 15, that first phase centers on the Historic City Hall district at the north end of the waterfront. It covers zoning, development code, transportation and economic analysis, options for public access and a look at environmental conditions. That's planning money, and no new riverfront park opens this season.

Just downstream, the timeline is longer still. In August, The Oregonian reported that the Locks Authority expected ownership of the Willamette Falls Locks to transfer from the Army Corps of Engineers by April. It said partial use, perhaps one day a week, could come by 2029, with full operation targeted for 2031. The article also noted that "partial" and "full" operation haven't been defined yet.

Those projects run on multi-year schedules. This year's holiday plans are already set. On Dec. 5 at 6 p.m., the tree that used to be lit at 22500 Salamo Road will be replaced by one in front of 1720 Willamette Falls Drive.

If you own a home within walking distance of that tree, you'll see the change on parade night and on the other Saturdays this winter. And if a season of crowds on your street has you wondering what your home near Historic Willamette is worth, Jacob Sanchez can give you a number based on what's actually selling near you. Get your instant home valuation.