FRI. DEC. 2, 5pm-7pm ǀ Conkling St & Eastern Ave
On Fri. Dec 2, 2016, business owners, residents and visitors gathered at Eastern Ave & Conkling St to mingle with hot chocolate & Hoehn’s cookies, get a photo with Santa, dance along with Rufus Roundtree & da Bmore Brass Facorty, light the grand tree AND open the beloved Highlandtown Train Garden!
Following the event, folks celebrated at the Merry Mixer hosted by RoofTop Hot & the Venice Tavern. Others gathered at Peak Performance and Fillipo’s Restaurant & Lounge for festivities.
For pictures from the event click below:
For your digital photos with Santa click below:
What makes the holiday season special in Highlandtown is the same thing that makes it special pretty muchanywhere else, according to Keith Gibson, a resident who grew up in the neighborhood and returned to buy his grandparents’ house at Fagley and Gough streets.
“It’s a time of year when we get to bridge some gaps,” he said as he attached lights to a tree on Conkling Street during a Nov. 12 community decorating session. “The community comes together across a lot of diverse borders.”
Part of that he said, comes naturally from involving families and children, who always show up for the Highlandtown Holiday Kick-off Celebration, this year scheduled for Friday, Dec. 2, at 5 p.m.
The festivities begin in front of the Southeast Anchor Library (Eastern Ave. and Conkling St.), with tunes from Rufus Roundtree and Da B’more Brass Factory, followed by the tree-lighting at 6 p.m. and free pictures with Santa, portrayed, as always, by State Delegate Luke Clippinger.
Following the tree-lighting, the Highlandtown Train Garden crew will start their engines at 6:30 p.m., sending two trains through a miniature Southeast Baltimore, complete with relatively new businesses (the Highlandtown Gallery) and old ones (Little Tavern, where you bought them “by the bag”).
“The train garden brings people back to another time,” said Doug Campbell, one of the crew who starts working on it in the spring. “It makes them forget all their problems and puts them in a miniature world.”
Not that the train garden omits all the warts – viewers may notice a rat emerging from under a manhole cover. Some of the streets feature tiny pieces of litter.
After the train garden, adults are invited to head over to RoofTop HoT and the historic Venice Tavern, both at 339 S. Conkling St. The former is owned by farmers and features their own produce, the best selections of local provisions in the city, and yummy eats for sale provided by Chef Dan. The latter offers, very possibly, the most inexpensive craft beer in the state.
“The beginning of the evening is geared more toward families,” said Smit-Peters. “The after-party is more for adults.”
Keep scrolling below to see flyers for our holiday events in both English and Spanish.
