St Marys Lights Up celebrates another successful year of bringing the Penrith community together at Queen Street, with Penrith City Council’s evening event seeing 15,000 people brave the cold and enjoy the winter-themed night.
The lines for the free amusement rides and synthetic ice rink only grew longer as the night went on, with attendees enjoying winter craft workshops, Laughter House Entertainment’s Little Big Stage performances and a variety of activities and games for the entire family.
Council’s event supported local Queen Street businesses, with many attendees exploring what the street had to offer with stores extending their opening hours throughout the night.
Penrith Mayor Todd Carney was thrilled by the event’s success, praising it for bringing the community together as families and groups of friends enjoyed the free event, especially given the current economic climate.
“Many people let our Events team on-site know how much they appreciated the event, especially with the variety of activities available for families and groups to participate in free-of-charge,” Cr Carney said.
“With the current cost of living being what it is, we felt that an event like this allowed families, individuals, and groups of friends the chance to experience a great night out at a low cost. It was important that we provide an evening where all the entertainment is free, including the amusement rides.
“When we first debuted St Marys Lights up three years ago, the event spanned four nights and saw over 18,000 people attend. It’s blown us away to see how well-received this event has become in one night.
“We identified in our St Marys Town Centre Place Plan the community’s desire to see more events hosted in the area, with St Marys Lights Up being one of those initiatives.”
Check out the photographs and video from the night at Council’s Facebook at facebook.com/penrith.city.council
Council would like to thank St Marys Town Centre for sponsoring the synthetic ice rink and Western Sydney International Airport for sponsoring the winter craft workshops.
St Marys Lights Up is proudly funded by the NSW Government.
Image Captions:
Photo: A family enjoying St Marys Lights Up 2024.
