Dorval Mayor Edgar Rouleau counted down: “three, two, one.” He then flipped the switch on the city’s Christmas tree for 2016. After a pause of about one second, the tree finally exploded in light.
The Dorval Christmas Village opened for the 12th year. It’s a ritual aimed at giving around 80 local businesses in the area a push for the holidays.
Every year, the most popular appearance at the village is Santa, who sauntered in aboard a limousine emblazoned with the city’s logo and waited as hundreds queued up to see him.
One street the business community hopes will be on full display this year is Dorval Avenue.
In the summer, the entire street from Highway 20 to Lakeshore Boulevard underwent a complete overhaul.
Now the street is finished, with broader sidewalks and better lights. The business community hopes the Christmas Village will show off the new avenue as people exit the highway.
“It’s drawing people to come see Dorval,” Beatrice Cuzzi, of the Dorval Avenues, a business association, said. It offers passersby the chance “to see the businesses that are around.”