Hollister Christmas lights getting backlash on social media

A video posted to Facebook of downtown Hollister’s Christmas lights, has sparked quite the debate. Kevin Henderson, a Hollister resident, according to Facebook, called the holiday display a “failure” and a “waste of money.”

“The idea was, ‘How can we make downtown more vibrant?'” said Peter Hernandez, owner of Ohana Shaved Ice in downtown Hollister.

Hernandez said the idea to “deck the halls” of Hollister was an initiative sponsored entirely by the downtown business community. He said they all came together to pay for and install the decorations.

Mayor of Hollister, Ignacio Velazquez, said the decor didn’t cost tax payers a dime. “There’s no reason to pay a professional ‘tree light wrapper’ to do the work. It’s a part of this community and we should participate and enjoy that time together. Rather than saying, ‘Give us the tax dollars so we can waste your money,'” said Velazquez.

Online, critic was harsh. The display was compared to one in Morgan Hill. The City of Morgan Hill said they spent about $38,000 on its downtown lights, and that they will stay up year round. Some Hollister residents said they would love to see that in their downtown.

“The city should be doing that stuff anyway. All cities should be doing stuff like that to bring people into the businesses,” said Dave Stauffer, who works in Hollister.

This is exactly what the businesses in Hollister were hoping to do. They said they wanted to make the downtown feel festive during this special time of year. “It’s for everyone to benefit from, what we’re doing. That includes those that wouldn’t like what were doing,” said Hernandez.

Others said they appreciate the time the business put into the project. “The lights are fine. They’re beautiful,” said Richard Rosenthal, a Hollister resident.

The City of Hollister said the lights downtown are only temporary and will be come down after the holiday season.