The annual Daisy Avenue Christmas Tree Lane Parade, a Wrigley neighborhood tradition that began in 1953 and is also commonly known as the Daisy Lane Parade or the Daisy Parade, will be back again this year on Dec. 10.
The parade will return to its original route after two years of pandemic-induced changes—the event was reimagined as a socially distanced car caravan last year, and it was canceled altogether in 2020.
Wrigley will ring in the holiday season with the annual Daisy Lane Parade on Saturday, Dec. 10 at 5 p.m., followed by a night of holiday entertainment on Sunday, Dec. 11, from 7 to 9 p.m. that will be full of “dazzling performances to bring holiday cheer to spectators,” according to a city release.
The parade will start on Daisy Avenue at West Burnett Street and travel south down the east side of Daisy Avenue to Pacific Coast Highway, there it will make its way around the median and back up Daisy Avenue until it reached West Hill Street.
Daisy Avenue between Willow Street and PCH will be closed to vehicle traffic for the parade staging area and parade route. In previous years, up to 10,000 people have gathered to watch the spectacle.
“Our Daisy Lane Parade has been a holiday staple for our community for many years,” 7th District Councilmember Roberto Uranga said in a statement. “I am excited for its grand return around the median and the accompanying night of entertainment, and I look forward to sharing the joy of the holiday season with everyone there.”
The Daisy Avenue Christmas Tree Lane Parade has been a Long Beach staple since 1953 when Gertrude Whittle worked with the Long Beach City Council and Council of Churches to help decorate the grass median on Daisy Avenue with a Christmas Village and nativity scene.
When city funding dropped in 1977, the parade ended, but it was revived in 1988 by Maria Norvell, who is now known as the “Mother of Christmas Tree Lane.” Today, Norvell stewards the parade along with the Wrigley Area Neighborhood Alliance (WANA).