Last December, the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce lit the town tree on a Sunday, December 7. This year the It's a Wonderful Life in Lafayette Holiday Celebration is on Friday, December 4, from 4 to 6 p.m. The Chamber's events calendar puts it at Lafayette Plaza, 3530 Plaza Way. Moving the date is a small change. It also fits the rest of the town's calendar from early November through mid-December, which runs almost entirely on weekday evenings downtown. The theater on School Street, the library on Mt. Diablo Boulevard and the plaza all set their starts somewhere between 4 and 7 p.m.
The Tree Lighting Moves to a Workday
The program itself hasn't changed. The Chamber lists a free visit with Santa, free rides on the Lafayette Express train, the official tree lighting, live music, crafts and holiday treats. The Chamber's own page tells families to "Arrive early to see Santa's arrival and plan to stay in downtown Lafayette for dinner!"
That line makes more sense on a Friday than it did on a Sunday. When the lighting ends at 6 p.m. on a Friday, the whole family is already downtown at the start of dinner hour, with the weekend ahead. The Chamber also says the City of Lafayette and its event partners hang twinkle lights downtown for the season. It hasn't posted a separate 2026 date for turning them on.
For 2026 the Chamber has published only the two-hour window. It hasn't posted separate times for Santa's arrival or the lighting itself. That's why "arrive early" is the most useful advice on the page.
School Street and Mt. Diablo Boulevard Carry November
The tree lighting closes out the season. The weeks before it already follow the same evening pattern. Town Hall Theatre, at 3535 School St., runs three fall youth class productions on consecutive weekends. The Lafayette Library and Learning Center Foundation holds 7 p.m. author evenings at 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd. on three nights in the first two weeks of November.
| Date | Time | What | Where |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thu., Nov. 5 | 7 p.m. | Dorothy Lazard, "Behind the Desk at the Main" | Lafayette Library, 3491 Mt. Diablo Blvd. |
| Fri., Nov. 6 | 6 p.m. | "Olympus: The Greek Rock Musical," 2nd–3rd grade class | Town Hall Theatre, 3535 School St. |
| Fri., Nov. 6 | 7 p.m. | Nicholas Epley, "A Little More Social" | Lafayette Library |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | 2 and 6 p.m. | "Olympus" | Town Hall Theatre |
| Sun., Nov. 8 | 2 p.m. | "Olympus" | Town Hall Theatre |
| Tue., Nov. 10 | 7 p.m. | An Evening with Joyce Maynard | Lafayette Library |
| Fri., Nov. 13 | 7 p.m. | "The Grunch," 4th–5th grade class | Town Hall Theatre |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | 2 and 7 p.m. | "The Grunch" | Town Hall Theatre |
| Sun., Nov. 15 | 2 p.m. | "The Grunch" | Town Hall Theatre |
| Fri., Nov. 20 | 7 p.m. | "Into the Woods Jr.," 6th–12th grade class | Town Hall Theatre |
| Sat., Nov. 21 | 2 and 7 p.m. | "Into the Woods Jr." | Town Hall Theatre |
On Friday, November 6, the two calendars overlap. Olympus starts at 6 p.m. on School Street, and an hour later Nicholas Epley speaks at the library a few blocks away. Tickets and registration are on the Epley event page. The Town Hall shows step up by age over three weekends. The Grunch follows the youngest class, and Into the Woods Jr. closes the fall session the weekend before Thanksgiving. The library's other two evenings, Dorothy Lazard on November 5 and Joyce Maynard on November 10, fall on a Thursday and a Tuesday.
The library's calendar continues into December with a Spinal Health Workshop on Tuesday, December 1, at 2 p.m. It's presented with Cancer Support Community and is one of the few daytime events in the season.
A Panto About Draining the Reservoir
After the tree lighting, Town Hall Theatre takes over again. Its Robin Hood of the Reservoir: A Holiday Panto runs December 11 to 19, with a preview on December 10. Heather Cousins, Lulu Braunstein and Kathleen Olson wrote and directed it. Tickets are $25, and the show runs 90 minutes with one 15-minute intermission. Here is how the theater describes the plot:
"When a power-hungry Sheriff threatens to drain the town's beloved reservoir, Marian must decide how to protect her home, her family, and her community."
This year the plot lands close to home. EBMUD's earthquake retrofit of the Lafayette Reservoir tower is on a published schedule that runs to completion in fall 2027. The utility notes that the reservoir may close during key construction periods. The status of that work is on EBMUD's project page, which is the place to check before a weekend walk.
Most of the panto's performances start at 7 p.m., with matinees mixed in. The ticketing page lists these performances:
- Thursday, Dec. 10, and Friday, Dec. 11, at 7 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 12, at 2 and 7 p.m., and Sunday, Dec. 13, at 2 p.m.
- Thursday, Dec. 17, at 10:30 a.m. and 7 p.m.
- Friday, Dec. 18, at 7 p.m., and Saturday, Dec. 19, at 2 and 7 p.m.
The lobby opens an hour before each show. Town Hall runs a happy hour with $1 off beer, wine and cocktails from 6 to 6:30 p.m. before evening shows and from 1 to 1:30 p.m. before matinees, with live music from Bay Area musicians. Town Hall's adult education program fills in around the panto. "Yes, and Wine" runs on December 13 from 7 to 9 p.m. for $30. A free Story Game Night is on December 14 from 6:30 to 10 p.m., and a free Script Club is on December 28 from 6 to 8 p.m.
Where the Calendar Runs in Daylight
A handful of events break the evening pattern, and they're scattered across the morning and weekend hours.
The Contra Costa Vintage Market sets up at Vintage Vida, 3581 Mt. Diablo Blvd., on Sunday, November 8, starting at 10 a.m. It returns for a Holiday Edition on Sunday, December 13, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Admission is free, and vendors fill two parking lots near Zahra Boutique and BMO Bank. On December 13 you can shop the market in the morning and still make the 2 p.m. panto matinee.
The Chamber's Community Thanksgiving Breakfast is on Tuesday, November 17, from 7 to 8:30 a.m. at the Lafayette Veterans Memorial Center, 3780 Mt. Diablo Blvd. Emmy-nominated actor D'Arcy Carden is the featured guest, and tickets are $50. Strings & Keys Music Studio holds a grand-reopening ribbon cutting on Thursday, November 5, from 10 to 11 a.m. at 3705 Mt. Diablo Blvd., Suite A. Presentations start at 10:15. The Chamber's Holiday Mixer and Vendor Fair goes back to evening hours on Wednesday, December 9, from 5 to 7 p.m. in the Great Hall at St. Perpetua Church, 3454 Hamlin Road. Some vendors will have goods for sale. Nonmembers pay $10 in advance or $20 at the door.
The New Meters Leave Evenings Free, and Charge for the Daytime
The evening pattern also matters for parking. On September 28, the Lafayette City Council adopted Ordinance 704, according to Lamorinda Weekly's October 14 report. The ordinance adds the city-owned "Ace" lot at 3299 Mt. Diablo Blvd. and the Gazebo lot at 3429 Mt. Diablo Blvd. as meter zones, and it extends metering to both sides of Oak Hill Road. The new graduated rate at the two lots and on Happy Valley Road, Oak Hill Road and Dolores Drive is $2 for up to one hour, $4 for up to two hours, $4.50 for up to three hours and $5 for four hours or more, with a $5 daily maximum.
The enforcement hours matter more for the holiday calendar than the rates do. Under Resolution 2026-51, which the council took up alongside the ordinance, the Ace and Gazebo lots would be metered Monday through Friday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. and free on evenings and weekends. Dolores Drive, Happy Valley Road and Oak Hill Road would be metered Monday through Saturday during the same hours and free on evenings and Sundays. Here's how the season lines up against those hours:
- Free under the proposed hours: the 7 p.m. library talks, the 7 p.m. Town Hall shows, the Wednesday mixer on Hamlin Road, which sits outside the listed zones, and both Sunday vintage markets.
- Metered under the proposed hours: the Thursday morning ribbon cutting, and most of the tree lighting. A Friday arrival at the Gazebo lot at 4 p.m. falls within weekday enforcement until 6.
- Partly metered: Saturday matinees parked on Oak Hill Road, Happy Valley Road or Dolores Drive, since those streets are metered on Saturdays until 6 p.m.
The city hasn't announced when the new meters start. The resolution authorizes City Manager Niroop Srivatsa or a designee to change meters, payment systems and signage, and staff will coordinate those changes. Whether December 4 is the first Friday with the new rates depends on that schedule. Signs posted at the lots on the day will be more reliable than any calendar. The ordinance also removes on-street parking on First Street between Mt. Diablo Boulevard and Deer Hill Road, a change Caltrans required. That stretch is off the list of places to park for the plaza this year.
At The Beaubelle Group, we live and work in Lafayette too, and we're glad to see the downtown calendar this full. If your family's plans this season include a home sale or purchase, we'd be pleased to talk it through after the panto or before the tree lighting. Request a Complimentary Home Valuation.
