Lights just make people happy, and we welcome families to drive by the shopping center, pick up some to-go restaurant and curbside shopping orders, and know that there is a light at the end of this tunnel.”

Emilie Andrews, regional marketing director at Vestar

Tempe Marketplace and Desert Ridge Marketplace are re-hanging holiday lights so families can get out of the house and enjoy something different from the safety of their own cars.

The holiday lights will make their debut tonight, Friday, March 20 at Tempe Marketplace, 2000 E. Rio Salado Parkway in Tempe, and Desert Ridge Marketplace, 21001 N. Tatum Blvd. in Phoenix, according to a release.

Why holiday lights? While Christmas is still nine months away, the Vestar-owned shopping centers wanted to show that there is still light and hope in the face of COVID-19, the release states.

“We noticed homes nationwide reinstalling holiday lights and thought, why not us as well?,” Emilie Andrews, regional marketing director at Vestar, said in the release. “Lights just make people happy, and we welcome families to drive by the shopping center, pick up some to-go restaurant and curbside shopping orders, and know that there is a light at the end of this tunnel.”

Both centers are currently still open, providing several hand sanitizing stations, clean and stocked restrooms, added employee training and ongoing and nightly sanitization of facilities.

While most tenants have chosen to remain open, all restaurants have been ordered to close, with many moving to takeout-only, delivery and curbside service models.

For a full list of restaurant and tenant specials and updated business hours, go to https://tempemarketplace.com/temphours/ and http://shopdesertridge.com/promotion/delivery/.