In 1987, Woodland Heights neighbors set luminaries along their curbs, driveways and porches and served holiday refreshments on the Norhill Esplanade. According to a Woodland Heights Civic Association history published this October, that first evening brought 20,000 people into the neighborhood. The name "Lights in the Heights" seems to have been added in 1989.
The 39th edition is Saturday, December 12, from 6 to 9 p.m. This year it runs along Highland and Omar streets between Studewood and Beauchamp. If you went last year, you walked Bayland and Woodland. The year before, it was Byrne, Euclid and 7½th. The event changes streets, and each year the households on the new route supply most of the event, porch by porch.
A route that changes hands
The WHCA publishes a new route every fall, and the City of Houston Special Events office has to approve it. The 2026 route has that approval. Here are the recent routes:
| Year | Featured streets | What the WHCA said about the choice |
|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Byrne and Euclid | Picked after resident feedback; the streets hadn't been featured in close to 10 years |
| 2024 | Byrne, Euclid and 7½th | Announced in the WHCA's October update |
| 2025 | Bayland and Woodland | Announced in September |
| 2026 | Highland and Omar, between Studewood and Beauchamp | Approved by COH Special Events |
The 2018 note shows that a street can sit out for close to a decade before it gets another turn. So for most households on Highland and Omar, this is the first time hosting in years, and some newer owners on those blocks have never hosted at all.
The tradition has gone dark once. In December 2020, the WHCA announced there would be no organized Lights in the Heights event: no permits, no extra police, no portable toilets and no traffic control. The Leader reported that the public walk came back in 2021.
Why Highland and Omar's porches matter
The 2026 event page describes the walk as people strolling the streets while music plays from porches along the route. Since the event began, residents on the route have offered their porches as stages for volunteer musicians. This year the WHCA has made that request directly to "all the houses on Highland and Omar."
Joy Roth, a Woodland Heights neighbor, coordinates both the porches and the musicians. If a household volunteers its porch, she finds a musician to play from it for free, and the WHCA says musicians come from across the city every year to donate their time. Route households can sign up at [email protected].
In other words, the number of porches that sign up on these two streets sets how much music there is on December 12. Last year the WHCA said the walk through Bayland and Woodland included dozens of musical acts. A reader quoted in the Houston Chronicle's 2025 holiday lights roundup described it this way:
"This historic neighborhood closes off streets, has porch bands, and the community goes all in for lights and decorations for 'Lights in the Heights.'"
The decorations get judged too. Houston Public Media reported that 2025 categories included Most Crafty, Most Colorful, Most Creative and Most Wattage. The WHCA's winners post said volunteer judges toured the homes the Thursday night before the event, and it called that year's judging team the largest ever.
The bill was paid in October
The porches are free, but the street closures cost money. The WHCA has held a fundraiser for the event since 2013. This year it was the LITH Boots & Bow Ties Bash on October 15 at the Historic Heights Fire Station, 107 W. 12th St. Ticket sales, auction items and sponsorships go toward the December costs, including City of Houston permits, officer security and portable toilets. Gabby's BBQ, Eureka Heights and Kagan Cellars sponsored the food and drinks at the Bash.
The auction list was very local. The top live item was a fence-mountable LITH dinosaur, built and donated by the Save the Dinos from Extinction Committee, so the winner could have one of the esplanade dinosaurs at their own house. Wittpenn Bros Eggs donated six dozen fresh eggs, and Bodensteiner Service Inc. gave a restaurant gift card basket valued at $800.
Memorial Hermann Greater Heights is the 2026 Gold Sponsor. The Community Sponsors are Terry & Thweatt, P.C., Hogan Thompson Schuelke, Creole Design, Eureka Heights Brew Co., Kagan Cellars, Gabby's BBQ and Humbug Holiday Lighting. More than a dozen neighborhood businesses also donated to the Bash, from Tiny's Milk & Cookies and Citizen Pilates to January Moon and Tumble 22.
The parts that don't move
The featured streets rotate, but several parts of the event come back to the same places every year, and that's where the long-running volunteer work happens. The October history post names the people behind them:
- Permits and logistics: Ashley Allison secures the city permits and coordinates logistics for the event.
- The Norhill dinosaurs: Tiffany Tyler coordinates building the dinosaurs and raising money to keep them going.
- Watson Street Esplanade: Pat Rutledge and Louise Moss oversee the esplanade lighting, which Humbug Lighting sponsors this year.
- Friday Night Lights: Beth Sorensen runs the neighbors-only evening the night before the public walk.
This year's Friday Night Lights is Friday, December 11, from 5 to 8 p.m. on the Norhill Esplanade, the same spot where the 1987 refreshments were served. The plan includes s'mores, holiday music, beverages and a visit from Santa and Mrs. Claus. That's also where you pick up ornaments. For 2026 there are two, one cloisonné and one glass, both sold through the WHCA online store. The cloisonné design came from a young artist, picked by neighbors at the July members meeting.
Planning the weekend of December 12
The WHCA's 2026 page lists the route and the time but no logistics yet. Last year's information page is the best guide to how the evening usually works. Treat it as the 2025 setup and check the 2026 event page before you go.
- Getting there. In 2025, the public could walk the route. Traffic control and no-parking zones covered the route, and the rules applied to golf carts too.
- Getting around. Last year, golf carts and gas- or electric-powered scooters weren't allowed on the route. Wagons, strollers and other non-electric options were fine.
- Parking and bikes. In 2025, Zion Lutheran Church offered pay-what-you-can parking near the north end of Beauchamp, with proceeds going to its children and youth summer camps. Bike Houston ran a monitored bike valet at Woodland and Norhill on the Norhill Esplanade. Beauchamp is also one end of this year's route.
- Hosting a porch. If you live on Highland or Omar, email [email protected] to volunteer your porch.
- Volunteering off the route. The WHCA takes general volunteer offers at [email protected].
Several Houston Heights Association events fall in the same stretch. The 2026 Holiday Home Tour runs Friday, December 4, from 6 to 9 p.m. and Saturday, December 5, from 3 to 9 p.m. The day after Lights in the Heights, the HHA Mistletoe Market takes over Houston Heights City Hall & Fire Station at 107 W. 12th St. from 1 to 6 p.m. on Sunday, December 13. That's the same building where the Bash raised money for the walk back in October.
If you're thinking about a home on a street that might host Lights in the Heights one year, or you want to know how a December like this shows up in Heights listing photos, Brenna Abels can walk the route with you. Book an appointment and bring your questions about specific blocks.
