The nearly 30 foot tall sparkling red, green, gold and white garland that graces downtown Bozeman each December is officially called an “Intersection Cascade” but in town most people know them by another name, including Ellie Staley, Executive Director of the Downtown Bozeman Partnership.
“I say holiday spiders because that was handed down to me”
The partnership thought about retiring the infamous decor in the early 2000’s but the community rallied behind the familiar garland. In 2021 the green spider was damaged in high winds, and started a multi-year effort to restore all four of the spiders.
“They will be especially glittery and bright and it’s because they’re new”
The partnership purchased the new parts from the same company which originally sold the decor in 1969. The effort to maintain and hang the spiders includes many collaborators.
Private businesses loan their bucket trucks for the install as well as the city of Bozeman’s forestry division and fire department.
Tim O’Tool an Engineer from the Bozeman Fire Department has volunteered to lead the effort to maintain the lights over the last five years. Including take the garland out of it’s large wooden storage crates and checking each lightbulb.
“We switched over to LED bulbs about five years ago but we used to have incandescent bulbs and we'd have to replace a thousand a year. So now, we replace five a year maybe.”
As the decorations were put up many downtown store employees came out to admire and take pictures including Brigitte Fletcher and Michelle Vetter from the gift shop HeyDay who say seeing the spiders goes up has a sense of nostalgia.
“It’s almost from another era , but here we are and we're still enjoying it all.” Fletcher said “Right, it doesn’t matter how big Bozeman is or is becoming this is something very small town, very warming and I think that's what people really enjoy as well.” Vetter added.
The decorations will remain up until the first Tuesday after New Years.
