Falconer Rotary Club and Falconer officials are looking for grant funding – including NY Forward grants – to expand operations at the Santa House and surrounding park in Falconer.

Some of the improvements are small right now – improving handicapped accessibility in and out of the Santa House.

A range of bigger projects include expanding the decorations in the Santa House to better transform the entire park into a winter wonderland so the space can be used throughout the entire winter season. Such projects could include updating the electricity within the house, as well as adding more benches and picnic tables for people to use outside of the winter season.

Making the Santa House the focal point of a winter events space is more beneficial to the village than a recently painted mural, in our opinion. Those who want to take their families to outdoor Christmas events typically have to go to the Buffalo or Erie areas. Imagine, if you will, an expanded Santa House that is used both during the Falconer Christmas parade as well as some weekends leading up to Christmas. Imagine walking with a cup of hot cocoa through ice sculptures in Davis Park or a Christmas light trail in the Falconer area on weekend nights during the holiday season.

Some have fond memories of the Festival of Lights in Niagara Falls or taking a trip with children to see the lights in Presque Isle during the holiday season. There’s nothing that says we can’t do something on a smaller scale here that brightens the holiday season.

The Santa House could be the centerpiece of a wonderful holiday tradition in the Jamestown area. Kudos to the Falconer Rotary Club for thinking of ways to reinvigorate the Santa House and bring more people to one of the area’s underappreciated treasures. The building is a longstanding piece of Falconer history that could be a piece of Falconer’s future as well.