Holly Days Annual Event Returns To The Dayton Arcade

For the second year in a row, Dayton Arcade hosts its popular holiday celebration.

Dayton, Ohio —The Dayton Arcade will once again welcome attendees from all over the region to its annual flagship event, “Holly Days at the Arcade Presented by Universal 1 Credit Union & AES Ohio”.

Holly Days, the 1992 and 1993 events hosted at the Arcade by the City of Dayton, featured merchants, holiday décor, and entertainment. It was estimated that around 150,000 Daytonians visited the Arcade during these early events. In 2021, the Dayton Arcade’s resurrected Holly Days event drew huge crowds for its first annual event in almost 30 years. This year’s three-day event will bring back the nostalgia and excitement that powered the past Holly Days.

“Holly Days at the Arcade Presented by Universal 1 Credit Union & AES Ohio”, organized by Cross Street Partners and Culture Works, will incorporate the Rotunda event space as a food and artisan market, featuring holiday shopping from over 30 vendors. The Tank Inspired by CenterPoint Energy will also host additional vendors, a community Lego Build hosted by Brixilated, and a cash bar. Local food trucks will line Fourth Street in front of the Arcade’s main entrance. The Contemporary Dayton will have its CoSHOP available with a focus on multicultural artists, woman creators, and sustainable items. The Arcade’s holiday décor and surprises will be sure to delight Daytonians of all ages.

Live holiday entertainment curated by Culture Works will also be a highlight, with local performing arts groups set to perform in the Arcade’s iconic Rotunda and Tank event spaces. These performances will take place all throughout the event’s three days, with a full schedule to be announced the first week of December. "I think the artists have just as much fun creating and performing for Holly Days as the guests do watching them," said Lisa Hanson, President and CEO for Culture Works. "Our creative community really knows how to activate these spaces inside the Arcade and captivate a crowd. We’re thrilled to help bring even more performances and local artists to Holly Days in 2022!”

“We’re very excited to build upon the success of last year’s Holly Days event,” said Megan Dunn Peters, Arcade Community Manager for Cross Street Partners. “We’re grateful to our sponsors Universal 1 Credit Union and AES Ohio for helping to make Holly Days 2022 a magical holiday experience for both local Daytonians and regional visitors, and we hope spending holidays in downtown Dayton becomes a treasured family tradition.”

“Holly Days at the Arcade Presented by Universal 1 Credit Union & AES Ohio” will be free and open to the public from 3:00 pm to 8:00 pm on Tuesday 12/6, Wednesday 12/7, and Thursday 12/8. For more event information, vendor list, and entertainment schedule, visit arcadedayton.com or the Dayton Arcade’s social media pages.

ABOUT THE DAYTON ARCADE

Cross Street Partners, Model Group, and McCormack Baron Salazar are redeveloping the historic Dayton Arcade, a collection of nine buildings totaling over 500,000 SF in the heart of downtown Dayton’s central business district. The full development plan recasts the Arcade in much the same way it was initially developed in the first decade of the 20th century—with a mix of retail, offices, event space and housing. The first phase of the project, the South Arcade, houses an innovation center with the University of Dayton as a higher education partner. Included in the South Arcade are 110-unit residential LIHTC and market rate development for artists and creative entrepreneurs, a shared commercial kitchen program, multiple event spaces, and food and beverage-focused retail. The second phase, the North Arcade, will include a marketplace retail and restaurant environment as well as a 94-room hotel.