The Friends of Turner-Dodge House and the Lansing Parks and Recreation Department are hosting a Holiday Open House at the historic building starting this weekend.
All three floors of the house will be decorated for the holidays by businesses, organizations and individuals.
"We're decorating the whole house to make it sparkle," said Michael Beebe, Chair of Events and Fundraising for Friends of Turner-Dodge House.
After an eight-year stretch hosting the Festival of Trees, the nearly 170-year-old Turner-Dodge House was closed last year during the holidays due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
This year, Susan Ward, interim president of the Friends of Turner-Dodge House, said they wanted to create something welcoming.
"Without making people uncomfortable with large crowds," she said.
They began reaching out to businesses in October and started to decorate the house in late November.
“With everyone being at home for so long and not doing anything, they’re ready to get out and see things like this," Beebe said. "And enjoy the holidays, especially at our beautiful mansion here.”
Visitors will have to wear masks inside the house and follow any other safety guidelines required by the city at the time of their visit.
Admission is $5 for adults and free for children 12 and under. Proceeds will go towards restoration and preservation of the mansion.
"It is a family event, so we do encourage families to attend," Ward said. "We'd just like to be able to offer back to the community some holiday cheer, which I think is something we are all in desperate need of this year.”
The festival will open to the public on Saturday, Dec. 18th and run through Saturday, Jan. 1st.
Visiting hours are from 1 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday and noon to 5 p.m. Friday through Sunday.
The house will be open from noon to 5 p.m. on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, as well as New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.
