Dozens of artists and craftsmen will be showing and selling their wares Saturday for the Biloxi Visitors Center Holiday Open House.
The 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. affair, which is free and open to the public, offers Christmas shoppers a last-minute opportunity to find locally created arts and crafts. Vendors will be set up throughout the 24,000-square-foot visitors center and on the center’s front lawn, which is in the shadow of the Biloxi Lighthouse, on U.S. 90.
“Last year we had about 30 vendors, and this year we’ll have 50,” said Visitors Center Manager Bill Raymond. “We had tour train rides last year, and they were so popular we’re doing that again, and this year WYES will host a sneak preview of the final season of ‘Downton Abbey’ at 2 p.m.
“This open house is a great event. Visitors can take photos with Santa and we’ll have plenty of refreshments and door prizes throughout the day.”
Also on tap this weekend: “A Charlie Brown Christmas” at the Salvation Army Kroc Center, a Special Needs Christmas Dance at the Snyder Center, and, wrapping up the weekend on Sunday afternoon, “Santa Claus at the Fire Museum,” featuring a chance for children to visit Santa and take free tours of the fire museum.
See the city’s holiday lineup
See the overall weekend entertainment lineup
City Desk: New departments, new hires?
Chief Administrative Officer David Nichols gives insight into the city’s possibility of creating an Engineering Department; hiring a Director of Administration, who would focus on financial issues; and a short-term loan of $7 million to help keep FEMA-funded projects on track. Also: the city’s proposals for Tidelands and Restore act funds.
Listen to the program
News and notes
Public meetings: The next scheduled meeting of the Biloxi City Council is Tuesday, Dec. 29 at 1:30 p.m. Â The Development Review committee will not meet next week.
Development report: The City Council on Tuesday approved initial plans for two subdivisions in the Woolmarket area while the Development Review Committee reviewed expansion plans for the Big Play amusement center at U.S. 90 and Veterans Avenue. To read this week’s report, click here.
Holiday garbage pickup: WastePro, the garbage collection contractor for Harrison County, has announced its holiday schedule. No service is planned for Christmas Day or New Year’s Day, which both fall on a Friday. Service will resume on the next scheduled service day. Recycle and bulk pickup services will be delayed by a day after Christmas Day and New Year’s Day.
Road work: Oak Street, which has been closed north of the CSX railway for infrastructure work, will be open to traffic through Jan. 4, according to the latest word in the Public Works Department’s online Traffic Update. To see the entire lineup of infrastructure and drainage work throughout the city, click here.
