At 5:30 p.m. on Sunday, Nov. 22, Mayor Jury will light the City of Loves Park's Christmas tree outside City Hall at 100 Heart Blvd. Five minutes later, fireworks set to Christmas music go up at City Hall. Then the lighted floats roll out of the City Hall parking lot and head north. This is the 29th year of the parade.
Light Up the Parks is a two-town event. The City of Loves Park and the Village of Machesney Park put it on together, and it ends with a second tree lighting at a second address. That second address is Machesney Town Center, the former Machesney Park Mall. This fall the building has a repaint, new signage and a full tenant list, so the second half of the night now ends somewhere the village has rebuilt.
The Night Runs on a Tight Clock
The Village of Machesney Park's calendar lists Light Up the Parks on Sunday the 22nd at 5:30 p.m. Holding it on a Sunday is not new. WIFR reported that last year's event also ran on a Sunday.
Here is how the evening goes:
- 5:30 p.m., Loves Park City Hall. Mayor Jury lights the city's tree and gives a short message.
- 5:35 p.m., fireworks. Christmas music plays with the display, and this year the city is asking sponsors to help pay for it.
- Around 5:45 p.m., the parade steps off. It leaves the Loves Park City Hall parking lot.
- After the last float arrives, Machesney Town Center roundabout. Mayor Johnson lights the village's 30-foot tree, the float awards are handed out, and Santa and Mrs. Claus meet children.
Since the fireworks start only five minutes after the first tree lighting, you need to be in place by 5:30 to see both.
The Vintage Goose will be near the Loves Park Festival Grounds all evening with hot drinks and pastries. It's a mobile café built into a 1964 Globetrotter Airstream, and it books events rather than running a fixed storefront. Last year WIFR noted that it kept the crowd supplied with warm drinks and goodies.
A Short Route That Crosses a Town Line
The route is short. According to the parade's registration page, floats leave Loves Park City Hall, cross over to Elm Avenue, turn west on Roosevelt Road, cross N. Second Street and finish at the Town Center, 8750 N. Second St.
Before it reaches Roosevelt Road, the parade has gone from a Loves Park city hall to a Machesney Park village center. Each town gets its own tree and its own mayor's welcome. One parade links the two.
Some of the setup happens well before the first firework. Float crews are told to arrive around 4:30 p.m. and finish setting up by 5:00 for judging. They come in off Walker onto Short Street, go south around City Hall and line up in the Sand Park Pool parking lot. Larger vehicles park by GE Aviation. If you drive toward City Hall in the late afternoon, expect trucks, trailers and decorated pickups around Walker and Short streets.
If you want to park and watch the fireworks, organizers point you to the Festival Grounds.
The Finish Line Used to Be an Empty Mall
The parade ends at the former Machesney Park Mall, at N. 2nd St. and Roosevelt Rd., and that's where this year's event looks different. Rockford News First reported on Oct. 7 that the building now operates as Machesney Town Center, with fresh paint and new signage. The station named these tenants:
- Nestory Park Self Storage
- Benny's @ Nest
- Hennig
- Experity
- TLC Assisted Living
- Maximum Performance, which has been in the old JCPenney space since 2017
- Menta Academy Northwest
In the same report, Mayor Steve Johnson told Rockford News First why the village kept the building:
"At one point, they were talking about just demolishing the old mall, and that just wasn't what should be done. And now it's 100% repurposed. It's 100% full."
The manager of Maximum Performance told the station that the overhead is now painted white and "looks really nice from the road from 251." On parade night, families walking up N. Second Street for the 30-foot tree will see that new front lit up for the evening.
The route and the order of events are the same as before. What changed is the building at the end. Mayor Johnson's tree lighting and the float awards both happen at the Town Center roundabout, outside a building the mayor now describes as 100% full.
What's Different for Families This Year
Some of this year's logistics affect parents, especially those with children riding on a float.
There's no drop-off area, and the Civic Center won't be open. The organizers' participant information page says this directly and asks groups to pick a meet-up spot in the Sand Park Pool lot near their float. Portable restrooms will be on-site for participants.
Plan your pickup at the far end. The same page asks groups to set a meeting spot at the Machesney Park end and says parents have been confused about this in past years. If your child rides in Loves Park and finishes in Machesney Park, decide before 4:30 p.m. who will be waiting at the Town Center.
Registration is closed. The 2026 parade is full, and organizers aren't taking more floats or participants. If your business or group wanted to join this year, you'll be watching from the curb.
There's only one Santa. Nobody dressed as Santa Claus is allowed on a float, because organizers arrange a single Santa for the parade. The page says the rule is for younger children who still believe. Children can bring their letters to Santa and Mrs. Claus at the Town Center, where a local church will hand out treats.
Four floats win awards. Judges pick 1st, 2nd and 3rd place plus a Mayor's Choice, and the awards are presented during the Machesney Park tree lighting. Every entry has to be lit because the parade runs after dark.
Picking Your Spot
The parade covers two towns in about the time it takes to finish a hot chocolate, so where you start depends on what you most want to see.
- For the fireworks and the first tree: Park on the Festival Grounds, arrive before 5:30 p.m., and stop by The Vintage Goose while you wait.
- For candy and floats: Stand along Elm Avenue or Roosevelt Road, where the parade passes between City Hall and N. Second Street.
- For Santa, the 30-foot tree and the awards: Head to the Town Center roundabout at 8750 N. Second St., where the night ends in front of the newly repainted Machesney Town Center.
If you have questions about sponsoring the fireworks, Sandra Hopkins at the City of Loves Park is listed as the contact at 815-654-5030.
The parade connects Loves Park and Machesney Park on a short stretch of road, and buildings along that corridor, like Machesney Town Center, can change what nearby homes are worth. If you live near the route and want a current figure for your own house, Popula Properties can run the numbers. Get Your Instant Home Valuation.
