A second round scheduled for Dec. 12
The Season of the Star brings seven new events to downtown Castle Rock including the 12 Stops of Christmas, a shopping scavenger hunt that encourages residents to visit each participating downtown business, gather stamps and be entered to win a prize package from the Castle Rock Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Alliance and the town.
The first 12 Stops of Christmas event was held Nov. 28, coinciding with Small Business Saturday, and a second one will be held Saturday, Dec. 12.
“The holidays are a special time in Castle Rock,” said Casey Willis, special events manager for the Town of Castle Rock. “With the traditional lighting of the star in November, we know our community shines particularly bright this time of year, and we wanted to keep the festivities going with the new Season of the Star event series.”
The series was designed to provide family-friendly activities during the holiday season and to encourage people to visit downtown businesses.
No data on the economic impact of the shopping event has been collected yet, but Jason Bower, owner of Castle Rock Music, one of the business participants in the Nov. 28 event, said that was a huge day for his shop.
It’s hard to tell, however, if the boom in business was because of the 12 Stops event or because the shop’s Small Business Saturday promotion was free restringing of guitars for residents. Either way, Bower said he was happy to participate.
“I try to participate in anything we do collectively as a downtown because it’s so different and special here,” Bower said. “Really, 99.9 percent of the businesses downtown are locally operated, and whatever is good for downtown is good for my business.”
Other businesses that participated Nov. 28 were The Emporium, Bling!, Lost Coffee, Copperfalls, Arts on Fire, Castle Rock Florist, Multicopter Warehouse, Castle Rock Beer Company, Rink at the Rock, Bennington Mercantile and Union Bistro.
Participants in the Dec. 12 event are Aloha Salon, Nick Lucey, Castle Rock Bike & Ski, The Smells Good Store, Enchanted Gifts, Castle Rock Florist, Finn LaFleur, The Barn, Lost Coffee, Angie’s Restaurant, Dream Pastries and Rock A My Baby.
“I’m looking forward to it,” said K.C. Need, co-owner of Castle Rock Bike & Ski and member of the Downtown Development Alliance. “I think it’s a great way to invite people to go into stores that they might not have gone in. In the winter, things slow down and I applaud the town’s efforts to bring in activities and drive business in downtown.”
Check-in for the event, which runs 4-7 p.m., will be at the North Pole Welcome Center in Festival Park, 300 Second St. Babysitting services are available at Rock A My Baby with reservations. The public is encouraged to take photos while attending all Season of the Star events and tag them with #SeasonoftheStar.
Shanna Fortier, Colorado Community Media
