Published: November 11, 2009 08:40 am      

W’burg announces holiday activities

By Adam S. Sulfridge / Staff Writer

During Monday’s meeting of the Williamsburg City Council, Mayor Harrison announced the dates and times of special events celebrating the upcoming holiday season, said that the city will showcase a live, thirty-foot-tall Christmas tree in the downtown area, updated the council on the status of Global Green Cars, and adopted a resolution supporting FACES, which stands for Federation of America’s Coal, Energy, and Security.

Representatives from FACES, Harrison said, asked for the city to adopt a resolution supporting its mission, which he explained was advocating “how important the coal industry is in our area.”

Councilman Richard Foley agreed, saying, “I understand their objective… Cap and trade will devastate the coal industry.”

Harrison added, “I don’t know what your political views are; I just know how important the coal industry is,” and all council members responded by voting in favor of the resolution. According to the mayor, the resolution implied no financial commitment to FACES, only “moral support” of their cause.

Global Green Cars, members of the Cumberland Valley Area Development District Board, and Mayor Harrison met last week to discuss the future of the company. He confirmed that Global Green Cars will not be hiring any new employees until after Jan. 1, and that even then, the company will only hire 40-50 people. He also said plans are still underway to help the company develop a manufacturing facility off Savoy Road, just outside of the city. The estimated cost of infrastructure improvements necessary to make the site suitable for development were around $2.5 million. However, he said, “We’re not going to do anything that would jeopardize the city.”

Additionally, Harrison said downtown Williamsburg will feature a live, thirty-foot-tall pine tree during the holiday season. This tree, he clarified, will be a Christmas tree, and Main Street Manager Nannie Hays added that locals will be able to put ornaments on the tree in memory of loved ones.

As for Williamsburg’s “Feels Like Home Christmas” celebration, Mayor Harrison said the city will kickoff the series of events with Williamsburg High School’s “Christmas in a Small Town.” The event, where Williamsburg band and choir members perform classic musical arrangements, will take place Dec. 10 at the Williamsburg Tourism and Convention Center.

The city parade will take place at 6 p.m. Dec. 12, and immediately afterward, citizens are encouraged to walk over to Bill Woods Park for Williamsburg’s annual ornament exchange and Christmas caroling events.

The Williamsburg Police Department, Harrison said, will host its Shop With a Cop charity Dec. 17, and the Turkey Trot, a 5K run/walk event which raises money for the charity, will take place Nov. 26. Registration for the race begins at 8 a.m., and the race starts at 9 a.m. Anyone who’s interested in participating in the race can call City Hall for more details.