Christmas Spectacular Show coming to Shasta District Fair grounds

Photo courtesy of James McDilda

Ice Skating in Anderson? Why not? The Shasta Junior Livestock Sale Arena offers plenty of elbow room and a solid roof to keep rain showers from ruining the frozen surface of Jim McDilda's 3,500-square-foot ice rink. Refrigerated coils in the laser-leveled floor will keep the ice rink frozen solid. Skates will rent for $3, ice for $7.

What happens when hobbies go berserk?

In the case of Jim McDilda of Redding, you get a five-week Christmas Holiday Spectacular Nov. 27-Dec. 27 at the Shasta District Fair grounds in Anderson.

For those not familiar with the name, McDilda is a 55-year-old business entrepreneur who loves Christmas and all the trappings.

“I grew up very poor on Long Island outside New York City. When I was 5 years old, I can remember standing in line holding a bucket waiting for a donation of food,” McDilda said.

During the holidays as a child, McDilda and his family would load into a friend’s station wagon to go look at the light displays, he recalled.

“We drove all around and there was this one house that I remember as being really spectacular. It was all animated with moving plywood cutout figures and spotlights,” McDilda said.

As he started to make money – first in the night club business and later in the fields of disaster response and emergency reconstruction – McDilda began collecting larger and larger lighting displays.

His showcase Christmas tree is 45 feet tall, 28 feet across at the base, has a 25-channel sequencer, 2,000 lighting circuits and 10,650 LED lights.

He also has a poinsettia arch that is 45 feet across and 25 feet high with a total of 3,603 bulbs.

Then, he has 12 other arches to create the effect of a lighted tunnel. Together, these arches have more than 5,000 lights.

Want more?

His booming cannon display spans 64 feet and stands 32 feet tall. It alone has 1,366 bulbs that give the illusion of a cannon firing a large glowing ball from one end of the display to the other.

And there is much, much more.

For years, the light display overflowed from his yard onto a vacant lot next door that he also owned.

The lighting displays attracted hundreds of cars each night and even a tour bus or two. Finally, the neighbors said enough was enough.

Three years ago, McDilda’s extravagant Christmas light display had finally outgrown his private residence and he was invited to put it on display in downtown Redding.

In 2007, the light display attracted more than 40,000 people and in 2008 an estimated 60,000-70,000 marveled at the syncopated light displays, photographed the ground art and took turns riding the scale model train that McDilda acquired from an amusement park.

Since then, he has acquired two more engines – a gasoline-powered replica steam engine, and a steam-powered engine that has been fully restored and will make its public debut at the Shasta District Fair grounds.

But there were too few ways for the downtown merchants or McDilda to capitalize on the large crowds and offset the high costs of mounting and operating the display.

“After I took it all down last year, I was actually thinking of selling everything,” McDilda recalls. “I was done losing money on the downtown area. I even went so far as to list everything with a professional broker.”

Instead of calling it quits, however, McDilda began looking for a larger venue with opportunities for other attractions.

For 2009, McDilda’s plans can only be described as spectacular, a word he and his marketing staff have incorporated into the name of his latest venture.

The light show, with its previously described items will take over the fairgrounds lawn usually reserved for amusement rides during the Shasta District Fair. His trains will wind throughout the lawn and then loop back to the display buildings where 150 commercial booths will hold plenty of holiday goodies, household items, unique and unusual things as well as foods of nearly every type.

Two other attractions may just be the best parts of the entire display, McDilda warns.

Did someone mention ice skating? In Anderson?

Sure, McDilda plans to laser level the floor of the Junior Livestock Show and Auction pavilion and install enough refrigerated coils to keep frozen a 3,500 square foot slab of ice ideal for skating shows or just practicing elementary turns, spins and jumps.

“We are going to give out a free skating pass to every school kid in Shasta and Tehama County,” McDilda said. “The tickets will be disbursed to the schools before Thanksgiving.”

He hopes to offer private and group lessons during the daytime hours, and group or public skating sessions each weekend afternoon and weekday evening.

Choral groups from area churches, schools and community groups will be invited to perform with a state-of-the-art multi-channel sound system that will envelop the entire grounds with holiday cheer and the spirit of Christmas every Friday and Saturday night.

Other groups have scheduled special performances on a large stage abutting one end of the ice arena, he said.

“We have booked Kids Unlimited. That is going to be a great show,” McDilda said, the words bursting excitedly from his bearded face.

Then, in Fusaro Hall, will be the pièce de résistance—a 7,000 square foot Santa’s Workshop and professional photo studio where everyone can see showcased merchandise from selected retailers, visit Santa Claus and have a portrait taken with jolly old St. Nick himself.

“I want an event that will overwhelm the senses,” McDilda states boldly. “The big payoff for me is the look on people’s faces when they walk through that gate.”

As the entire experience envelops the audience, McDilda is confident that he can turn even the most jaded grump into a child-like being filled with wonder again.

“I work real hard to take the Grinch out of everybody,” he said as a knowing twinkle flashes from his left eye.

“When people go out in the evening, they want to be entertained. They want to forget their problems. With an entry price of $5 for a one-time visit and $12 for a season pass, I know I can keep them entertained for several hours easy and at a price nearly everyone can afford,” McDilda said.

His enthusiasm is infectious, and he even has already started working on plans to make the event bigger and better next year.