Holiday Burnout

The decorative white doves and festive lights that have welcomed Christmases past to Debra Edmisten’s home are now in boxes gathering dust.

The 47-year-old accountant no longer invites friends over for some holiday cheer. What used to be her favorite season of the year has become a monthlong battle in her neighborhood with crowds so large they make holiday shopping at South Coast Plaza seem like a Sunday stroll in the park, she said.

Edmisten lives in the 9900 block of Dahlia Circle among about 75 homes near Mile Square Regional Park that have been one of the county’s showcases for Christmas lights and decorations. And along with the oohs and ahs, onlookers who stroll the neighborhood to get a whiff of the holiday spirit also leave behind trash like cigarette butts, empty beer bottles and dirty diapers, residents said.

Displays such as toy soldiers and wooden carolers have been stolen, and homeowners said they’ve caught visitors trying to tear down what took weeks to plan and set up. (Not to mention the costs, which reach thousands of dollars.)

“One year, my husband saw somebody urinating on the side of our house,” Edmisten said. “We decided not to decorate this year. We’re just tired of it, and everything that comes with it.”

The Edmistens are not alone.

At least a handful of homeowners interviewed said they decided not to decorate their homes this year because they don’t want to contribute to an event that turns their community topsy-turvy.

The neighborhood tradition began in the late 1970s when a couple strung some lights in the yard as a tribute to their son, who had been killed in an auto accident that year. Nearby residents soon joined in and over the years, the decorations grew into elaborate displays that transformed frontyards into mythical places like Santa’s workshop or Candyland, complete with blankets of fake snow on the ground and rooftops.

Window displays with giant teddy bears that rival those at local shopping malls adorn one home along Dahlia Circle. At another house, about a dozen letters to Santa in several different languages festoon the garage door and children are invited to write their own letters at a table nearby.

“It’s a lot of fun. . . . The atmosphere is very festive and the neighbors come out and socialize more than we usually do,” said Jane Pupa, whose home is Santa’s Sweet Shop this year. “But we all get sick of the crowd by the time Christmas comes around. By the 25th, we’re so relieved.”

The annual decorations have reached what some residents described as “Disneyland” proportions, attracting carolers, a violin quartet and even fast-food peddlers carting popcorn and hot chocolate along the sidewalks.

Traffic has been so congested in recent years that Fountain Valley police have had to block off the area to all vehicles without the special permits, which are only issued to area residents. The City Council also passed a resolution that prohibits street parking without permits two weeks before Christmas, authorities said.

Dozens of police explorers, reserve officers and members of the department’s Retired Senior Volunteer Program are deployed to help patrol the area, police Sgt. Dann Bean said.

“We get a good-size crowd over there every year,” Bean said. “Because of that, we always get some thefts, people taking a few light bulbs and things like that, but nothing major that we’re aware of.”

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Police and residents, including those who are against decorating their homes, agree that most people who visit the neighborhood are courteous and appreciative. They stay on the sidewalks and say “thank you” to homeowners.

“I used to decorate. I went all out,” said Vito Pizzo, who also decided not to decorate his home this year. “But I got tired of the rat race out there. To be frank with you . . . I got tired of people stealing light bulbs, and there are times when I want to come home to my own house and [the crowd] won’t let me come home.”

Marilyn Bailey, who has been taking her 4-year-old daughter to see the Dahlia Circle lights for the past two years, said she has noticed that “not as many homes are decorated this year.” Bailey said although she understands the homeowners’ frustrations, she was also saddened to see that some have stopped putting up their lights.

“My daughter looks forward to coming here to see the lights. This is part of her Christmas,” Bailey said. “I want to thank the people for doing this, and I know others are just as appreciative. . . . I’d hate to see all this taken away because there are some rude people out there who destroy it for the rest of us.”

Chances of the tradition fading away are nil, if resident Bob Harmon has any say. Harmon moved into the neighborhood three years ago and has decorated his home all three years. Toy soldiers line his yard and multicolored lights resembling icicles hang from the eaves of his home.

“I enjoy it and it makes me happy to see that the kids love it,” Harmon said. “I know it’s like a street carnival around here, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.”