In late November 2020, Savidge Street between Division and Buchanan lit up with about 120,000 holiday lights. MLive reported that the first Spring Lake Sparkle was organized by the operators of The Lilley Mansion and their nonprofit, Lilley Cares. The trees and storefronts along that stretch were decorated so people could take in the display from a car window or on foot downtown.

Six seasons later, Sparkle has a different center of gravity. The 2026 season is built around the Epicurean Village courtyard at 110 W. Savidge St. and The Temple Lounge. It's a run of dated evenings: lights, Santa, choirs and fundraisers. Passing through downtown on any night won't show you the whole thing anymore. Most of what Sparkle offers this year happens on specific nights at a single address, so you have to plan around it.

Six seasons, drawn inward

Sparkle has pulled its focus toward one corner of downtown a little more each year.

• 2020. Lilley Mansion owner-operators Robert Lopez and Patrick Roggenbau came up with Sparkle as a way to showcase the village. The first display ran along Savidge Street between Division and Buchanan, and The Lakeshore described it as a joint effort of merchants, sponsors and volunteers.
• 2024. The Grand Haven Tribune reported that the season opened Saturday, Nov. 30, with a 6 p.m. lighting ceremony at the Epicurean Village courtyard, along with hot chocolate, caroling and Santa, "before the village comes alight." That year Santa traveled from Tanglefoot Park to the courtyard, and the lights came on at 6 p.m.
• 2025. The Lilley Cares season announcement put the lights and seasonal installations at Epicurean Village Courtyard and Tanglefoot Park. The kickoff started with music in the village. Santa rode from Temple Lounge through downtown to the courtyard, where the lighting ceremony took place. Santa's House and the choirs were in the courtyard too.
• 2026. Lilley Cares' August 4 release says the season is "reimagined around the Epicurean Village courtyard and The Temple Lounge, offering a more intimate, community-centered gathering space for the season's events."

The first display was sized for a whole street. This year's is sized for a courtyard and a lounge.

What "more intimate" looks like on Savidge Street

The kickoff page calls Epicurean Village "ground zero for the duration of Sparkle." The three-story building has ground-floor retail, a restaurant, a bakery, 12 apartments and a rooftop deck. Its developer, Town and Country Group, lists Finn's Chophouse & Speakeasy among the tenants. The Epicurean Village website lists 12 local, non-corporate businesses on site.

The Temple Lounge is the second venue. It was built in the 1920s as a Masonic Temple and now hosts live music and private events. At kickoff, families head there after the lighting for Christmas films, hot cocoa and cookies.

The 2026 announcement describes where the season's events will gather. It doesn't say whether the street and storefront lights along Savidge will go up again this year. The kickoff page promises that "this year's changes" will be unveiled on the night, so the full picture comes out November 28.

The fundraising focus changed too

The tighter footprint comes with a sharper charitable focus. For 2026, Lilley Cares is partnering with The Salvation Army for the whole season. Major Penny Mungai and the Salvation Army Grand Haven team will be at every Sparkle fundraiser and event. The release says the relationship began during last year's season. The goal is $10,000 to support families in Spring Lake, Ferrysburg and Grand Haven.

WOOD TV's October 15 segment called this the "sixth year" of Spring Lake Sparkle. It highlighted Celebrity Bartender Night, where the guest bartenders include John Keating, the retired Detroit Tigers and Red Wings broadcaster. That evening is at Attwood's Kitchen & Drink, inside Epicurean Village, on November 5. Tickets are $59 and include two drink tickets and hors d'oeuvres. Once the events moved closer together, the fundraisers also landed at the same address as the family events.

The 2026 calendar, from Halloween to the last choir

Everything below comes from the event pages at springlakesparkle.com, plus the library's own calendar for the December 12 party. Events are at Epicurean Village, 110 W. Savidge St., unless noted.

The Spring Lake District Library's December calendar lists Christmas at the Library as a community Christmas party for all ages. It isn't a Sparkle event, but it falls in the middle of the Santa's House weeks.

Where the timing matters most

Since the season is now a set of scheduled nights, some dates need more planning than others.

The kickoff is when this year's changes are revealed. It starts at 6 p.m. on Saturday, November 28. Santa arrives on a Spring Lake fire truck and switches on the lights in what the organizers call a "Clark Griswold" style plugging in. The courtyard lights come on, there's caroling and hot cocoa, and the year's changes are revealed. Pictures with Santa follow. Visit Grand Haven lists admission as free.

The gingerbread class has a limited number of kits. The December 3 class is free, and every participant gets a kit. It's drop-in style and open to all ages, led by Chefs Patrik and Jeremy of The Lilley Mansion. You do have to RSVP, though, and each ticket reserves one kit. As of this week the event page still says the ticket link "will be furnished soon," so check back.

Santa's House runs three nights a week for three weeks. From December 3 through 19, the courtyard opens Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays from 5 to 8 p.m. The Spring Lake Schools Choir is scheduled to sing carols and hymns in the courtyard on Thursday, December 17, from 5 to 6 p.m., which is during Santa's House hours. One early evening on Savidge that week covers both.

Pancakes with Santa has two time slots. The breakfast is Saturday morning, December 5, and the dinner is Thursday evening, December 10. Both are at the Spring Lake Community Center on Cleveland Street, and tickets are $5.

The trick-or-treat afternoon on Saturday, October 31, from 4 to 6 p.m., is the first chance to see the courtyard used the way Sparkle will use it all season. Organizers say real-time updates are posted at facebook.com/springlakesparkle. If you want to make an evening of it, our guide to the Savidge Street food corridor covers the restaurants a short walk from the courtyard.

Here at The Sandi Gentry Team, we like keeping track of the traditions that make Spring Lake's winters feel like home, and Sparkle is one of the bright spots on our calendar. If you'd like to know more about life near Savidge Street, or you're curious what your own home would bring heading into the new year, explore Spring Lake with us or request your free home valuation. We'll see you in the courtyard on November 28.