As an out and proud Christmas junkie, one of my favorite things about Federal Way sadly only lasts for a month. Every December, the residents of the Viewpointe at Redondo go above and beyond to show their holiday spirit. Nearly every household in this neighborhood puts up holiday decorations that would put Clark W. Griswold to shame. Conveniently laid out in a loop, the streets of this 'hood are full of cars rolling through at two miles per hour with their lights off, every night of the week. 11 months out of the year, the place is just a collection of neutral-colored McMansions with perfect lawns but this time of year, it's like an attraction at Disneyland. The houses sparkle with thousands of twinkle lights, trees and shrubs shine in glorious technicolor and the lawns are filled with amazing displays. At one you might see a fully lighted train carrying drumming nutcrackers while down the street Santa tries to free himself from a giant illuminated igloo. Another yard features a larger than life, glowing nativity scene. Fairy light candy canes dangle from the trees and the sidewalks and driveways are lit up like runways.
The whole place is at once beautiful and gaudy and dazzling. I suspect that you can see it from space and that no one who lives here gets enough rest during the holiday season. It's as though they are doing the town a free public service and the drain on their sleep and electric bills is their gift to Federal Way. However, the real gift is in the bins they place on the sidewalk for visitors to drop off non-perishable food donations for the FW Food Bank. If you're looking for some holiday cheer and want to avoid the mall as much as I do, cruise out to Redondo with your holiday tunes on and some canned food donations - I dare you not to love it. 
we enjoyed the looping drive through the 'hood. you're right about beautiful *and* gaudy!
ReplyDeleteWe walk through every year. We get coffee, the kids get hot chocolate, and we slowly walk through and enjoy the lights. We bring food for the food drive, and enjoy the festivities!
ReplyDeleteWe were the first residents at Viewpointe; we bought a house under construction in late 1989 and moved into our new house in April 1990. The real estate market was a bit slow at the time, so the first three Christmases the builder, Schneider Homes, sponsored a holiday parade of lights and encouraged us all to join in, which everybody did. We had to move (job transfer) in 1999, glad to hear the tradition still lives to this day.
ReplyDeleteThanks for the history on this! It's such a great part of the community and it's so cool to hear from one of the founding members of this tradition!
Delete