WALSALL’S illuminations will be lighting up Bridgnorth skies for another two years after the town centre management partnership secured their lease.
Chairman Brian Davies said he was delighted the famous lights would be in the town until at least 2011, when the agreement would be reviewed.
“We set up a three year agreement with Walsall Illuminations and Walsall Borough Council. If they are as successful as last year’s event they could go on for longer,” he said. “
But we do not want a situation where we cannot sustain something that people have got bored of, or something we cannot spend enough money on to keep it interesting.
“Hopefully we’ll get support again this year but if after 2011 it’s run its course we can step back and think of something different.”
Speaking at the recent town council meeting Councillor Iain Seivewright, who is also the partnership’s chief financial officer, thanked the council for allowing them to stage the illuminations and noted 3,300 people had turned up to support the event over three days.
Having had just 10 weeks to plan the project last year the partnership is already working on 2010’s lights spectacular to make it bigger and more exciting.
“This time we have a whole year to plan it and we have already started discussions with a number of creative people,” said Mr Davies.
“Two artists have shown an interest, one of which is an expert in 3D design. They are working on a package.We always budgeted to make a shortfall, but even though we lost £1,000 it was nowhere near what we expected.
“We were also hoping to attract around 600 to 700 people, but we had more than 1,000 each day. It shows if you put on the right things for the people of Bridgnorth they will support it.
“We really want to make it a community event and I can’t thank the staff team in Walsall enough because they have been so helpful.”
Walsall Council confirmed the lights show was being scrapped for good over the weekend. The annual tradition at the town’s Arboretum was the biggest lights spectacular outside Blackpool, once attracting 250,000 people.