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Don’t miss out on the third annual Merry & Bright Holiday Series, presented by Lafayette Coca-Cola Bottling Co., happening Downtown this holiday season.
The holiday season is a time to come together and celebrate the connection you have to your family, friends, and community. Part of Downtown Lafayette Unlimited’s mission is to foster a downtown district where this can happen, to serve as a gathering place for memories and traditions that stand the test of time.
This is made possible by the overwhelming support of our sponsors, companies and individuals that also want to have a hand in the success of Downtown and see the vision that DLU has for the district. Whether it is decorating a tree in our Christmas Tree Extravagenza or becoming a presenting sponsor for one of our several events, this incredibl season would not have been the same without our incredible sponsors.
To truly serve everyone in the community, it is important to make it accessible to the community. Through our sponsorship efforts, we are able to keep entry to all of our events this season free to the public and welcoming to all.
“The whole team at Downtown Lafayette and DLU has been focused on bringing back the Merry & Bright series to Downtown and keeping entry to each event free, thanks to the support of our generous sponsors.” - Anita BegnaudCEO, Downtown Lafayette Unlimited; Downtown Development Authority
Downtown Lafayette’s Merry & Bright series may only be in its third year, but it has already made a huge impact. After making a huge investment to decorate and make Downtown vibrant for the holidays. After being unable to have in-person events in 2020 as a result of COVID-19, our team at DLU have been working tirelessly to bring Lafayette a wonderful variety of events for anyone to enjoy.
From a much needed concert to kick off the series to a fun-filled fair for the kids, family and community is at the center of every event we have for you this holiday season. Thanks to all of our Downtown churches, we also have a Christmas carol sing-along to truly get you in the spirit.
DLU is known for producing the Downtown Alive! Friday night concert series and will continue to contribute significant time, effort, and financial resources towards providing more one-of-a-kind family-friendly experiences that draw families to Downtown Lafayette.
The Christmas Tree Extravaganza is presented by Barczyk Spine & Joint. A grove of beautiful Christmas trees is displayed in Parc International and are decorated by businesses, families, and organizations all competing to win $500 for the nonprofit of their choice. Online voting for both events will take place beginning December 1st with winners announced on December 18th.
Window Wonderland, in partnership with Basin Arts, allows businesses to bring holiday cheer to their storefronts. Online voting for both events will take place beginning December 1st with winners announced on December 18th.
The Lighting of the Tree Concert presented by The Evangeline Bank & Trust Co., a free event, which will feature music by Chubby Carrier and the Bayou Swamp Band in addition to the lighting of the official Christmas tree of Lafayette with Mayor-President Josh Guillory and his family.
The annual Sonic Christmas Parade rolls through Downtown at 1:00 p.m. and will mark the official arrival of Santa in Lafayette. Following the parade there will be an after party presented by Meritus Credit Union in Parc International featuring holiday music, drinks, and activities for the entire family.
Parc Sans Souci will be transformed into a Holiday Market filled with thirty local artisans selling one-of-a-kind artwork and crafts accompanied by live performances. Holiday Market is presented by The Acadiana Advocate and is in conjunction with Second Saturday ArtWalk.
Candlelight Christmas is one of Downtown’s more traditional Christmas events with a live reading about a Savior born to a virgin in Bethlehem along with the singing of traditional Christmas carols, as led by Downtown parishioners and church choirs.
A special Christmas edition of Movies in the Parc, sponsored by Ochsner Lafayette General, marks the grand finale of the Merry & Bright Holiday Series with a free showing of The Polar Express on Saturday, December 18th in Parc International. Family-friendly activations will accompany the free movie showing and concessions will be sold on-site.
This event series is made possible by our generous presenting sponsor Lafayette Coca-Cola Bottling Co., and event partners The Acadiana Advocate, Barczyk Spine & Joint, Basin Arts, DenMar Staffing, Guilliot Family Dentistry, The Evangeline Bank & Trust Co., Meritus Credit Union, and Ochsner Lafayette General. Huge thank you to our Silver Bell sponsors and Downtown Angels for making spirits bright: Acadiana Security Plus, brandRUSSO, CGI, Chase Tower, Lafayette Travel (LCVC), Parish Proud, Professional Outsource Services, Victor Ashy, ACSW Architects, Duplantis Design Group, Gleason Group, IDI Workspaces, Keaty Real Estate, MortgageSolutions360, Right Angle, and Under Pressure.
Little did Acadiana know that on Friday, April 8th, 1983, history would be made in Downtown Lafayette. It all started when a group of people got together to try and figure out how to bring life into Downtown Lafayette. Downtown Development Director Cathy Webre and her team had a hunch – “Give them music, and they will come.” Downtown Alive! was then born on a tiny stage in the middle of Jefferson Street with a performance from Beausoleil.
Festival International de Louisiane is set to take over Downtown Lafayette this weekend, converting the city center into a world music mecca like no other. The streets will be packed with throngs of sandal clad weekend warriors—over 300,000 people attend the festival each year, coming from all over the country and around the globe. Everyone knows the bands they want to see and where the stage is, but there’s more to Festival than just the music. This guide to Festival International’s unofficial and off-the-beaten-path events will help you to get the most out of a full week of Downtown festivities.
After the success of both Chicken Sandwich Snackdown and Burger Battle Royale, we HAD to continue the fun competition amongst our Downtown neighbors. 16 Downtown restaurants will compete for the ultimate title: TACO TAKEDOWN CHAMPION.This exciting month-long food fight is a fundraiser for Downtown Lafayette Unlimited, with $1 per every taco sold going to our non-profit organization. Check out our Facebook and Instagram feeds to see who’s ready to knock-out the competition. Public voting begins August 15.
Lafayette, LA – Downtown Alive! announces their Fall lineup as they return to in-person programming this Fall in Parc International. This beloved community tradition pivoted to virtual programming throughout 2020 and Spring 2021 due to COVID-19 and managed to reach over 45,000 viewers in the Spring season alone thanks to supporters near and far.
Maker Faire Lafayette has opened online registration and announced the schedule of events for the week of April 5-10, 2021. This year’s event is presented by Lafayette Public Library, Downtown Lafayette Unlimited, and AOC Community Media.
It was like walking onto a Hallmark movie set for local artist Kelly Russo. Last year, downtown Lafayette took decorating for Christmas seriously, and along with it, came the Window Wonderland competition. Russo was one of 30 artists who decorated storefronts in hopes of winning and bringing Christmas cheer.
Lafayette, LA – Do you hear what we hear? Downtown Lafayette is becoming a Winter Wonderland once again this December. Downtown Lafayette Unlimited is producing “Merry & Bright,” a series of family-friendly holiday events in Downtown Lafayette sponsored by Lafayette Coca-Cola Bottling Company. The seasonal celebration includes a Christmas tree decorating contest, a concert featuring Curley Taylor and Zydeco Trouble, a competition for best holiday window display, a Candlelight Christmas featuring traditional carols, and a Movies In The Parc season finale —all taking place throughout December and following guidelines for safe outdoors events.
2019 was a transformative year for Downtown Lafayette, one that will mark the beginning of a new decade of momentum for the heart of Acadiana. Our organization has undergone exciting changes, beginning with the appointment of Anita Begnaud as the CEO of the Downtown Development Authority (DDA) and Downtown Lafayette Unlimited (DLU) in October of 2018. Anita hit the ground running by reinvigorating DLU’s membership and programming efforts, hiring Maureen Dugas Foster as the first ever Director of DLU, and acting as the spokesperson for a list of catalytic projects in Downtown—from the renovation of the Old Federal Courthouse and the construction of Vermilion Lofts and Buchanan Heights, to efforts addressing Downtown’s pressing infrastructure issues.
Downtown Lafayette will become the perfect destination for lovers of Christmas this December. In an effort to spread seasonal joy throughout the Acadiana region, DLU has committed to creating a month-long series of family-friendly holiday events in Downtown Lafayette. The seasonal celebration, called “A Merry & Bright Downtown Christmas” will feature a Christmas tree decorating contest, multiple concerts, a competition for best holiday window display, pictures with Santa, horse-drawn carriage rides, and a “North Pole” installation in Parc International—all taking place throughout the month of December.