GLENDALE, AZ — Every day after work, Coit Burner sets up a ladder and strings Christmas lights around the trees at Catlin Court. On this day, it was 30 down, over a hundred to go. Burner has owned Bears & More in downtown Glendale for nearly 30 years, and when he found out the city wasn't putting up lights on his street anymore, he took it upon himself to get permission to do it.
Burner says having lights hung up throughout Catlin Court during the annual Glendale Glitters festivities attracts more visitors to the businesses in the area.
"They'll stand on the corner and if they're looking, if it looks inviting, they'll want to come up," he said.
A lack of lights on the street is one of the changes made to the event within the past few years. Jim Burke with the city's recreation and special events department says they are now focusing specifically on events within Murphy Park.
"We have a different policy approach now for Glendale Glitters," Burke said. "We're focusing on live music, which is our Live At Murphy Park events several months out of the year to try to get more visitors downtown, more pedestrians to see downtown, visit the shops, the restaurants and engage in commerce."
Like last year, Burke says the city will have Christmas lights in Murphy Park, a hometown Christmas parade and weekly performances on the amphitheater.
But Head of the Historic Downtown Glendale Merchants Association Lorraine Zomok says she wants the city to bring back the bigger programming within the Catlin Court area.
"Our question is why can't we have both? Wonderful music all throughout the year and bring back the Glendale Glitters that people have treasured for more than 30 years?" Zomok said. "So much history goes away because it's either not protected, taken care of or cared about. That can't happen."
"We started a new event last year called Christmas in Catlin Court, they're held every Friday and Saturday night and we've had community organizations like the downtown ambassadors help and volunteer with us to do crafts with the kids. Our wonderful Glendale Glitters Santa Claus that's been here for 25 years now is in Catlin Court and comes every Friday and Saturday night to greet the kids like he has been for nearly three decades."
To complicate matters more, Zomok's husband, Bud, says two years ago the city began using the name "Murphy Park Lights", instead of "Glendale Glitters". He says he discovered the name "Glendale Glitters" had never been purchased by the city, so he bought it himself because he was afraid someone else would use it for something else. He says he was willing to give the name back to the city if they wanted to use it again. He just asked that they hang up the lights in Catlin Court and fix an irrigation line at his home.
"Two weeks later I received a piece of mail from an attorney demanding I return the tradename Glendale Glitters," he said. "I find it interesting because the city never owned the tradename."
Records on the Secretary of State's website show the city registered the name Glendale Glitters, with an added logo, in September of 2022, two months after Zomok registered just the name. This year, the city is now using the name Glendale Glitters to advertise the event.
In a statement the city said: “The city of Glendale owns the rights to the name “Glendale Glitters” and the accompanying artwork associated with the logo. The city has used the name since 2007, except for during the pandemic.”
On Monday, the city will have a ceremony to kick off the holiday festivities.
