MERRY AND BRIGHT. Check out Barstow Street's new festive fixtures – an effort the South Barstow Business Improvement District made to brighten the holiday season.

If you’ve found your heart growing three sizes when you’ve cruised down South Barstow Street after dusk in recent weeks, there’s a reason: the warm, celestial glow cast by the thousands of white lights installed recently on trees lining the street. The South Barstow Business Improvement District strung the lights as a way of brightening the season – literally and figuratively – for shoppers, visitors, pedestrians, and everyone else who finds themselves downtown. The trees have been lit from the 100 block to the 500 block of South Barstow, and the effect could be extended in the future. “We’re thrilled with how the lights turned out,” said Erin Klaus, Co-Owner of Tangled Up in Hue and president of the South Barstow BID Board. “The South Barstow District is a center of shopping, dining, and entertainment for Eau Claire and we hope that people are able to enjoy this beautiful addition to the district for years to come.”