A holiday tradition: Jack Kazanzas Star to be installed in downtown Orlando
ORLANDO, Fla. - It just isn't the holidays without the Kazanzas Star hanging proudly across Orange Ave. in downtown Orlando.
On Sunday, Nov. 20, the 600-pound star will be raised 50-feet over the intersection of Orange Ave. and Central Blvd. – carrying on a more than 50-year holiday tradition.
Here's the story of how this came about: It all started in the 1950s when two competing department stores – Ivey’s on the east and Dickson & Ives on the west of Orange Ave. – joined together in 1955 to hang the Christmas star between the two.
In 1984, after the department stores had closed, Jack Kazanzas – a lifelong resident of Orlando – led a campaign to raise funds to replace the original Christmas Star that had fallen into disrepair. In 2010, the city rewired the star which is now made up of more than 4,000 LED lights.
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The Star has now come to symbolize the beginning of the holiday season in downtown Orlando.
Road closures of Orange Ave. from Central Blvd. to Pine St. will begin at 6:45 a.m. on Sunday and the star is scheduled to be installed from 8 - 9:30 a.m.