Southgate turns on its holiday lights twice this year. On Friday, Dec. 4, a model railroad club and the City of Southgate light the tree at Kiwanis Train Park on Leroy Street. One week later, on Friday, Dec. 11, Downtown Southgate switches on Market Center Park on Eureka Road. Those lights stay on through Jan. 3, 2027.
Those two lightings say a lot about how the season is built here. Six groups each run their own piece. A volunteer train club, the city, the Downtown Development Authority, the Downriver Family YMCA, a school booster group and a community theater all publish their own dates. Put those dates in order and you get about eight weeks of things to do, starting in a YMCA gym and ending in a lit-up park.
The Season Opens Indoors, at the Y and a Middle School
Southgate's holiday season starts with shopping. The Downriver Family YMCA hosts its Handmade for the Holidays Vendor Show on Sunday, Nov. 8, from noon to 5 p.m. at 16777 Northline. The listing shows a $35 registration fee for vendors. Check with the Y about entry for shoppers.
The following Saturday, Nov. 14, the Southgate Band Boosters hold their 8th Annual Holiday Craft & Vendor Show at Davidson Middle School, 15800 Trenton Rd. It runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., and admission is $2. This year's show is the eighth.
Neither event is run by the city. Each group sets its own date and spreads the word itself.
Small Business Saturday Is Where Downtown Steps In
The Southgate DDA takes the next turn. Its Shop Small Spectacular falls on Saturday, Nov. 28, the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It's listed as an all-day event with the Southgate DDA as the contact. Details are on the flyer and the Downtown Southgate Facebook page. Watch there for which shops are taking part.
The DDA's agenda shows how the downtown side of the season gets planned. At its Sept. 17, 2026 meeting, the board listed "Shop Small Spectacular 2026" and "Christmas Décor" together under new business. The same group planning the Small Business Saturday push is also planning downtown's holiday decorations. That ties Nov. 28 to the lights that come on at Market Center Park two weeks later. The DDA has been doing this for years. Its Nov. 21, 2024 agenda listed "Shop Small Spectacular 2024" and a "Winter Market."
The First Lighting Belongs to a Train Club
The first tree lighting isn't downtown. It happens at Kiwanis Train Park on Leroy Street. The event is billed as Southgate Winter Wonderland, a Tree Lighting Ceremony and Santa Express Train Rides. It's free, and donations are accepted.
The Great Lakes Live Steamers run the trains and present the evening with the City of Southgate. Here is the schedule the club has posted for Dec. 4 and 5, 2026:
- Friday, Dec. 4, 5:30 p.m.: Tree lighting with city officials, caroling, and Santa arriving on a fire truck
- Friday, Dec. 4, 6 to 9 p.m.: Train rides
- Saturday, Dec. 5, 6 to 9 p.m.: Train rides
The club describes the rides this way:
"Train Ride's by the Great Lake Lives Steamers will take you through a Winter Wonderland of lights and sparkles, donations cheerfully accepted."
Each ride includes a short trip to the North Pole and a visit with Santa. Rides are weather permitting, so check before you bundle everyone into the car.
The December rides cap a busy fall for the club. The News-Herald reported that the Kiwanis Park mini-train ran Halloween rides Oct. 16 and 17. The same track and the same volunteers handle two seasons, about seven weeks apart.
Dec. 4 Is the Night Two Pieces Overlap
On the evening the tree lights up on Leroy Street, Southgate Community Players opens "A Christmas Story" at 12671 Dix-Toledo Rd. Wendy Peets and Mike Stec direct, and Thomas Mattison Jr. and Mary Jo Hunt produce.
According to the Southgate Community Players ticket page, the show runs:
- Friday, Dec. 4, at 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 5, at 7:30 p.m.
- Sunday, Dec. 6, at 2:30 p.m.
- Friday, Dec. 11, at 7:30 p.m.
- Saturday, Dec. 12, at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets are $20 for adults and $18 for students and seniors 55 and over.
The times line up well. The tree lighting starts at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 4, and the curtain goes up at 7:30. A family could catch Santa's fire truck at Kiwanis Train Park and still get to Dix-Toledo Road for opening night. If you'd rather keep the evenings separate, use Saturday the 5th for trains and the Sunday matinee for the show.
The Dec. 11 performance also lands on the night Market Center Park lights up. Two groups, two openings, both on Fridays a week apart.
A Week Later, the Second Lighting Moves Downtown
"Light up Market Center Park" opens Friday, Dec. 11. The listing runs 6 to 10 p.m. through Jan. 3, 2027, with Downtown Southgate as the contact. The listing says more information is coming, so watch the City of Southgate Facebook page linked from the event for what opening night will include.
The park has been downtown's gathering spot for about a decade. The News-Herald covered its dedication in September 2015 on the former Montgomery Wards site. That day included live music and a one-day farmers market with more than 30 vendors. The city's draft 2025–2029 recreation plan describes a 2.3-acre site with an amphitheater, restrooms, a pavilion, event space and a water feature.
The water feature is the splash pad. It opened Sept. 15, 2022, funded by a $500,000 Wayne County grant, and the News-Herald noted that its jets are lit from below. Market Center Park was built for summer evenings, and it carries the season into January. Kiwanis Train Park's train lights run for two nights. The Market Center Park listing runs more than three weeks, through the holidays and past New Year's Day.
The Whole Season on One Page
| Date | Event | Run by | Where | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sun., Nov. 8, noon–5 p.m. | Handmade for the Holidays Vendor Show | Downriver Family YMCA | 16777 Northline | Vendor fee listed; check for shoppers |
| Sat., Nov. 14, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | 8th Annual Holiday Craft & Vendor Show | Southgate Band Boosters | Davidson Middle School, 15800 Trenton Rd | $2 |
| Sat., Nov. 28, all day | Shop Small Spectacular | Southgate DDA | Downtown Southgate | See DDA flyer |
| Fri., Dec. 4, 5:30 p.m. | Tree Lighting Ceremony | Great Lakes Live Steamers with the City of Southgate | Kiwanis Train Park, Leroy St | Free |
| Fri.–Sat., Dec. 4–5, 6–9 p.m. | Santa Express Train Rides | Great Lakes Live Steamers | Kiwanis Train Park | Donations accepted |
| Dec. 4, 5, 6, 11, 12 | "A Christmas Story" | Southgate Community Players | 12671 Dix-Toledo Rd | $20 adults, $18 students and seniors 55+ |
| Dec. 11 through Jan. 3, 6–10 p.m. | Light up Market Center Park | Downtown Southgate | Market Center Park, Eureka Rd | Details to come |
Count the "Run by" column and you get six organizers across seven entries. The city's only listed role is as co-presenter of the tree lighting. Everything else on the list comes from a club, a nonprofit, a booster group, a theater troupe or the downtown authority. That's why no single flyer covers the whole season, and why this page lists it in one place.
The season changes hands about once a week, and I'm happy to help you keep track of it. If you'd like a printable copy of this calendar for your fridge, or a heads-up when Downtown Southgate posts the Market Center Park details, reach out to Lisa Sobell. And if a December move is on your mind, you can also request a free home valuation while you're in touch.
