The City Council on Oct. 18 unanimously approved the Carol of Lights committee's request to waive the special event and equipment use fees for the Dec. 4 festivities.

The committee is headed by Sally Howe, a downtown business owner and publisher of The Campbell Express, who is spearheading the committee to ensure that the event continues, despite the city's elimination of the $38,000 event from its budget.

Carol of Lights, which usually includes bringing in snow to Campbell, horse-drawn sleigh rides, visits with Santa Claus and train rides, would have been reduced to decorative lighting after the city cut the event from the budget.

Campbell Councilman Joe Hernandez said it had been a "difficult decision" to take the Carol of Lights out of the budget because it was "one of the great things about Campbell."

He added, "We took it out of the budget and someone had to run with it and that's what happened. It is being planned entirely by volunteers who are soliciting donations."

Councilwoman Jeanette Watson concurred and said, " Campbell is a family town and geared toward these kind of events. We all really appreciate the effort being made here."

Though it was announced at the meeting that horse-drawn sleigh rides have been eliminated, the committee will still bring snow to N. Central Avenue.

Howe said the celebration would add some new items such as pony rides and a petting zoo, which will be in the parking lot next to the Courtyard. There will also be a manger scene in front of the Campbell Memorial Chapel. And the hours will be longer, from 5 to 9 p.m.

The Carol of Lights Committee includes business owners, civic community groups and the Campbell Chamber of Commerce. The celebration is completely volunteer-based.

The city is waiving $1,686 in event and equipment fees, which covers charges for things such as street closures and barricades. The committee will still pay an estimated $5,941 for city staffing at the event. The number of personnel scheduled to work the event has been reduced by 50 percent.

The city council waives such fees on a case-by-case basis. The council had already reviewed fee waivers for 2005 events. The deadline to file was on Nov. 1, 2004. However, council members made an exception because the 2005-06 city budget had not been finalized by Nov. 1. This prevented Carol of Lights organizers from submitting a waiver request because the decision to cut the event was not made until the first quarter of 2005.

The Carol of Lights committee is seeking donations for the event, and tax deductible contributions can be made to the Alan and Bonnie Aerts Foundation. Aerts will set up a dedicated phone line for those interested in donating.

"I'm pleased we're able to work out a proposal to have this event because it's been very successful in the past," Councilman Dan Furtado said.