FOUNTAIN VALLEY : Visitors Must Walk In to See Decorations

Beginning Friday, two major entrances to a neighborhood known for its lavish holiday displays will be blocked by police barricades to ease traffic.

Police Sgt. Kevin McKeown said that the area off Brookhurst Street between Heil and Edinger avenues will be open to residents only from 6 to 10 nightly through Dec. 24.

In seasons past, he said, as many as 100,000 people have visited the neighborhood in December to see its elaborately decorated homes, a community custom for more than 20 years.

“Traffic problems have become so monstrous that we had to do something,” McKeown said.

Barricades will be at Thistle Avenue and Brookhurst Street, and Sycamore Street and Heil Avenue.

Neighborhood residents will be issued free permits, effective through Dec. 31, to enter the area and park. The Police Department’s senior volunteer force will monitor and direct traffic nightly and check vehicles for permits.

Extra permits are available at the Police Department.

Visitors can park for free at the Fountain Valley Recreation and Cultural Center at Brookhurst and Heil. Street parking is also available on both sides of Brookhurst between Edinger and Heil.

For the first time, the city has also erected a temporary fence on the center divider on Brookhurst to encourage people to use the crosswalk at Heil.

“We’re just trying to use an extra precaution,” McKeown said.