Village at Leesburg Kicks Off Holiday Season

Village at Leesburg kicked off the holiday season on Friday with a tree lighting ceremony and a visit from Santa Claus.

General Manager Scott McCarthy said this is the first time the center has ever had a tree, which has 11,000 LED lights and stands 26 feet high.

Next to it sat Santa himself who greeted children of all ages. Bobby the elf created balloon masterpieces while Gus the elf and Tim the toy soldier entertained.

“I think a lot of people that came out today were already shopping or maybe heard about us on Facebook,” McCarthy said. “My idea is if you came out to shop and you were entertained, and you got some hot chocolate and a cookie, saw Santa, that’s what makes the whole shopping experience come around.”

Inova Loudoun Hospital was also on hand to promote Mobile Hope, which started about five months ago to help the needs of more than 600 homeless children in Loudoun County. A donation of $500 was donated by the Village at Leesburg including proceeds from the properties fountain.

“It feels great and I hope it continues past the holiday season,” said Director of Community Affairs Donna Fortier. “The relationship we’ve had with the Village at Leesburg has been phenomenal.”

According to McCarvery, at least 74 percent of Village at Leesburg is leased. Five or six more tenants are scheduled to move in next Spring.

“We are here for Leesburg and it seems like we’ve been embraced that way," McCarthy said. "Leesburg itself really hasn’t had a shopping center other than the outlets that they could call their home. We want to be that center. We want to have more events. We want to be the little town in town.”

Village at Leesburg will be available to the public this holiday season where a number of stores will offer discounts and other special promotions. Visit villageatleesburg.com for more details.