HOLIDAY TRADITION!
are back for Dyker Lights’ fi rst weekend
COURIER LIFE, DECEMBER 10-16, 2021 5
with thousands of neon lights
and blow-up characters galore.
The annual light festival
took place on a slightly
smaller scale last December
due to pandemic-related shutdowns
and social distancing
requirements, which kept
away tour buses (which usually
come in droves packed
with people, causing much of
the event’s congestion), and
prompted some homeowners
to keep their displays in storage
for the 2020 holiday season.
Following in the footsteps
of homeowners who are once
again decking their halls,
many of those tour buses have
returned for 2021 — as have
food and drink vendors who,
in previous years, have drawn
complaints from residents who
say they lead to trash buildup
and only further block streets
and driveways.
“I was very surprised at
how busy it is already,” Beckmann
said. “Last year, there
were no tour buses. But this
year, they are back.”
In 2019, Councilmember
Justin Brannan introduced
a local law banning vendors,
that was enacted shortly after,
but vendors quickly found
a loophole in the legislation
that allowed them to continue
slinging food on the thoroughfare.
The community board’s
district manager said the area’s
elected offi cials and city
agencies meet each year to
prepare for the luminous festivities
and lessen the impact
on locals — and for many
years have decided to confi ne
tour buses to 86th Street and
12th Avenue, forcing passengers
to do walking tours of the
displays instead.
Additional wastebaskets
have also been supplied to corners
along 11th and 12th avenues,
as well as 86th Street,
and CB10 has requested traffi
c control to try and contain
light-seers to the sidewalks.
Beckmann hopes visitors
will take public transportation
or try to carpool to the
lights, as it can be hard to fi nd
parking in the area.
Logistics aside, the local
civic leader said that the return
of the Dyker Lights has
become a bright spot for many
as the city continues to recover
from COVID.
“A lot of neighbors are
happy to see the lights back,”
Beckmann said.
LIGHT IT UP: The beloved ‘Dyker Lights’ kicked off this year with tons
of dazzling holiday light displays, including infl atable Santas, hordes of
snowmen, and tons of holiday cheer! Photos by Paul Frangipane