Downtown Minneapolis has opened its holiday season under a different name in each of the last three years. In 2024 it was Holidazzle, a five-day festival on Nicollet Mall in the week before Christmas. In 2025 it was the Winterapolis Light Up, held the evening after Thanksgiving. This year it is Shine On Minneapolis, which the City of Minneapolis and the Minneapolis Foundation announced on November 7. Each year brought a new name and a different group in charge. The 2026 version also changes where the money goes. Less of it pays for one big production, and more of it pays for musicians in downtown bars, art in empty storefronts and a longer night on the Mall itself.
Three Kickoffs in Three Years
The changes come from a hard funding decision. In October 2025, MPR News reported that the Minneapolis Downtown Council would stop producing both Holidazzle and the Aquatennial. Council President and CEO Adam Duininck told MPR the two events together typically cost between $1 million and $2 million. He also said city and corporate sponsorship was down that year. Holidazzle had already been shrinking. MPR reported that the five-day 2024 event drew about 65,000 people to Nicollet Mall. The original parade drew 750,000 in its first year, 1992.
| Year | Name | Who put it on | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Holidazzle | Minneapolis Downtown Council | Five-day festival, Dec. 18 to 22, on Nicollet Mall between 6th and 11th streets |
| 2025 | Winterapolis Light Up & Winter Kickoff | Meet Minneapolis, Minneapolis Foundation, Mpls Downtown Council | Free event Nov. 28, 5 to 7:30 p.m., in the IDS Crystal Court and on Nicollet Mall |
| 2026 | Shine On Minneapolis Kickoff Block Party | City of Minneapolis and Minneapolis Foundation | Free open-street party Nov. 27, 5 to 10 p.m., Nicollet Mall from 7th to 12th streets |
The Minneapolis Foundation and its president, R.T. Rybak, appear in both of the last two rows. At the 2025 kickoff, Rybak said in a Meet Minneapolis release that the "light up" celebration "will become Minneapolis' traditional welcome to our best season." A year later, the welcome has a new name and the City is a co-creator. The Downtown Council's own role has also moved. Duininck told MPR the council should "think about more of a promotion-and-storytelling role rather than producing events," with its attention on filling empty space and redesigning Nicollet Mall.
Those two goals, filling empty space and redesigning the Mall, run through most of what is new in this year's program.
Where the Money Goes This Year
The clearest example is Sounds of the Season. This new program puts Minneapolis musicians in downtown bars, restaurants and other venues to play seasonal music from Thanksgiving through December. The City presents it, Cantus Presents and Twin Cities Jazz Festival produce it, and it is funded by the Small Business Resiliency Fund as part of Minneapolis Forward. Money set aside to support small businesses is paying for live music inside small businesses. The program posts its details on Instagram at @mplslivemusic. Mayor Jacob Frey described Shine On in the Minneapolis Times announcement as a chance to "support the businesses, restaurants, and shops of downtown Minneapolis."
The storefronts are part of the program too. An illuminated projection will run on the Zero Empty Spaces building between 8th and 9th streets on Nicollet. That building is 815 Nicollet Mall, a former Walgreens. In June, Mpls.St.Paul Magazine reported that founders Evan Snow and Andrew Martineau were converting it into subdivided studios for artists to rent, and that more than 30 artists came to a March info session to see the renovated space. This season, the former drugstore is one of the lit-up stops on the walk between 8th and 9th.
The giant musical instruments and holiday symbols along the Mall connect to the redesign work. Each piece is human-powered and plays holiday tunes. The announcement calls them part of the Nicollet Next prototype festival. According to the Downtown Council's Nicollet Next page, the full prototyping festival begins in spring 2027. It will feature temporary installations meant to improve comfort and the downtown experience for workers, residents and visitors. Designers have until December 8 to submit proposals. The RFP calls for eight to 10 projects, each on the Mall for eight to 12 weeks. The holiday pieces work as an early preview, so a stroll on November 27 shows the kind of street furniture the Mall is testing for next year.
How the Night of November 27 Runs
The kickoff lasts five hours and moves along the Mall from north to south. Per the Shine On announcement, the evening goes in this order:
- 5 p.m., IDS Center Crystal Court. Family activities with crafts for kids, mascot visits and live music, thanks to Artrageous Adventures and YMCA Downtown.
- 7 p.m., Peavey Plaza. Lighting of an artist-made illuminated holiday tree. Target supports both the Crystal Court activities and the tree lighting.
- Through the evening, on the Mall. The First Official Snowball Toss and an open throwing range afterward, plus the World Marshmallow Roasting Championship.
- 7 to 10 p.m. A DJ Dance Party from Dance Agenda in the street.
That schedule runs well past last year's. The 2025 Winterapolis kickoff ran from 5 to 7:30 p.m., and its lighting moment was at 6:05 p.m. in the Crystal Court. This year the main lighting moves outdoors to Peavey Plaza, and the party continues for three hours after it. That leaves time for dinner downtown before or after, which matches the program's purpose.
Peavey stays busy after the kickoff. The Minneapolis Farmers Market will run a Christmas tree lot there every Friday through Sunday through the season, while supplies last. Downtown condo owners who want a real tree can pick one up a few blocks from home.
The Familiar Anchors Around It
The Shine On calendar lists more than 530 holiday and winter events at ShineOnMinneapolis.com. Familiar downtown names fill the list:
- Markets: Dayton's Holiday Market, Holidays On Nicollet at IDS, Roho Collective, and the Minneapolis Christkindl Market, which runs November 20 through December 20, 2026, at North Loop Green.
- Stage: "A Christmas Carol" at the Guthrie Theater, "How The Grinch Stole Christmas" at Children's Theatre, "All is Calm" at Theater Latté Da, The Dakota's holiday concerts, VocalEssence's "Welcome Christmas," and the Twin Cities Gay Men's Chorus "Carols by Candlelight."
- Hotel and venue extras: Jingle bars and Santa visits at the Marquette Hotel, plus The City of 10,000 Flavors, a cooking competition for professionals and home cooks at the Minneapolis Convention Center.
- After the holidays: The Great Northern Festival, The Luminary Loppet, Art Shanty Projects and the Lake Harriet Winter Kite Festival.
Dayton's Holiday Market, Holidays on Nicollet and the Christkindl Market at North Loop Green all appeared under the 2025 Winterapolis umbrella too. In 2026 they share the season with city-funded live music in downtown bars and restaurants, a longer street party and a new tree on Peavey Plaza.
Newer Tables Within Walking Distance
Since the program is meant to keep people downtown into the evening, these are some newer places nearby for dinner or the morning after.
Sushi By Baaska now has a permanent home at 602 Washington Ave. S., in the former Zen Box space. Chef Baaska Tegshbileg's pop-up omakase dinners have become a full modern Japanese restaurant, according to Racket.
PopUp Bagels has its first Minnesota shop at 107 Third Ave. N. in the North Loop, led by Minnesota partners Dan Daquisto and Alex Smereczniak of Hustle & Dough, as Fox 9 reported.
Revival's return brings it to 730 Washington Ave. N. in the North Loop and to Market at Malcolm Yards. The Star Tribune reported that Jester Concepts bought the brand and its recipes, and that the fried-chicken recipes have not changed. The North Loop location is a short walk from the Christkindl Market.
Duluth's Best Bread has a Minneapolis outpost in the form of a Tuesday-only grab-and-go counter in the Lumber Exchange Building at 10 S. 5th St., with an October 13 start date reported by Bring Me The News. Co-owner Robert Lillegard said an invitation from Mix Cosmetiques sped up a Minneapolis expansion he had pictured 10 to 15 years away.
Barra, an Australian-inspired coffee shop at 950 Nicollet Mall, has been open in the skyway since at least March, according to Bring Me The News. It is a warm stop near the south end of the block party route.
What Carries Into Spring
The holiday installations come down with the season, but the work behind them continues. Nicollet Next proposals are due December 8, the Downtown Council plans to send award notices in early January, and installation is set for early spring 2027. The Mall that hosts the next holiday kickoff may look different from the one hosting this one. The singing snowflakes and stars on Nicollet this December are early versions of that work.
If you live downtown or are thinking about moving there, a season like this one shows how the blocks around a building get used in winter. Mitchell has spent years helping downsizers and move-up buyers weigh how life near Nicollet compares with the rest of the city. If you'd like that conversation before the tree goes up at Peavey, Mitchell Culbreath is glad to talk it through. Let's Connect.
