By Erin Malcolm
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas, and that means it is time for the 15th annual Meridian Ranch Christmas lights competition — and this year, there is a revamped approach.
Jamie Adams, senior community association manager of Warren Management Group (the managing agents for the Meridian Ranch Design Review Council and association managers for the Stonebridge HOA), has been part of the long-standing tradition since its inception. Adams said it all began as a festive suggestion made by the developer when there were only about 900 homeowners in the community.
Since then, the Meridian Ranch DRC and Stonebridge HOA have stirred up the holiday spirit in the neighborhood by hosting an annual contest where homes with the most elaborate outdoor decor were judged by board members. The winners were awarded prizes for first, second and third place in designated sections throughout the development, plus a “grand prize” for the overall winner.
“We’ve been doing that for 15 years. And this year, we’re changing up the competition a little bit,” Adams said.
For the first time in competition history, the DRC and HOA board members won’t be judging the competition; Meridian Ranch residents will now be responsible for determining the winners by voting for their favorite Christmas lights in the neighborhood.
Adams said in previous years, the judges would drive up and down every single street in the neighborhood while tallying the best details, brightest lights and biggest “wow factor.” But as the neighborhood has grown and technology and trends have evolved, the old method of judging has faced new challenges that warranted the change.
“The newest thing that’s come about the last couple years is under eaves lighting,” Adams said. “And how do we judge that since it’s professionally done lighting?”
By allowing residents to vote, Adams said she thinks it should even the playing field and encourage community engagement.
At the time of the interview with Adams in early November, the contest hosts were working to create an online platform for voters from each area to cast their votes for the most dazzling displays in the specific area where they reside.
Additionally, instead of dividing the competition into several areas with several winners as was the standard procedure in past years, the competition will now be consolidated into three areas: DRC 1, DRC 2 and Stonebridge.
Participating homes must register online at no charge to enter the competition in its new format, a step that was not required in the past. Adams joked that she would be knocking on the doors of previous winners to ensure they sign up this year. At the time of the interview in early November, Adams estimated that 20 homeowners would participate in DRC 1, 30 in DRC 2 and 20 in Stonebridge.
Prizes will remain as one of the competition traditions. The homes that win first, second and third place in their respective areas and the grand prize winner over all three areas will be awarded gift cards and an electric bill credit with Mountain View Electric Association (a perk that came about through a partnership with MVEA five years ago and will continue into the new contest formatting).
Another tradition that has stood the test of time is hand-delivered custom Meridian Ranch ornaments for every homeowner who decorates for Christmas.
“We used to go around in little red hats to every single house that was decorated, and we would put an ornament on their door thanking them for participating in our Christmas lights contest,” Adams said.
For the past two years, the DRC and HOA have enlisted the help of volunteers from the Junior ROTC at Falcon High School. The DRC and HOA donates $250 to the ROTC, and the students deliver the ornaments.
Last year, ornaments were delivered to 2,400 homes and this year Adams is preparing the helpers to deliver to 3,000 homes.
Adams said, “We’ve designed a different ornament for every year. There are some homeowners that have been in this community for so long they literally have every single one of the ornaments.”
From residents collecting every ornament to decorate their trees and the friendly outdoor lighting rivalries among neighbors, Adams said there are cheerful stories and traditions that have been handed down to families for the holiday season throughout the last 15 years.
With glee, she said, “I just love the spirit!”
These Meridian Ranch houses from last Christmas show just how the outdoor lights competition heats up in the middle of winter.
