Knox County Parks and Recreation’s Holiday Festival of Lights at The Cove at Concord Park will begin with complimentary horse drawn carriage rides on Friday and Saturday, December 19 and 20, from 6:30 until 9 pm. The Cove, located at 11808 Northshore Drive, will be decked for the season with hundreds of thousands of sparkling lights. The event will continue through December 28, (excluding Christmas Day) for pedestrian traffic.
The carriage rides are sponsored by Pimento’s and Lenoir City Utilities Board. “The Holiday Festival of Lights has become a tradition at The Cove,” said Doug Bataille, Senior Director of Parks and Recreation for Knox County. “We appreciate our sponsors joining us to present it again this year,” he added.
Parks and Recreation staff erect light displays along the walking trail throughout the park. Animated displays and a giant live tree with 22,000 lights are always highlights of the event. “Our parks staff works really hard to put this all together. They spend many hours making sure all the lights are working and setting up the displays,” Bataille said.
The event is free to the public, but a contribution of canned goods in encouraged. Donated food this year will be given to the Love Kitchen. Cash donations are also welcome and will be given to the Legacy Parks Foundation.
Holiday activities, including a Gift and Craft Market, cookie decorating and bonfires for roasting marshmallows, and tasty treats like kettle corn, hot chocolate and desserts from Pimento’s will be available.
On the nights the carriages are running, walking and pets are not allowed for safety reasons. However, pets on leashes are welcome during the walk through nights.
Media sponsors include WVLT-TV, B97.5, The Knoxville News Sentinel and Comcast.
For more information, please contact Knox County Parks and Recreation, 215-6600.
