I love civics. This season of my life as Mayor of Cedar Falls has been the most interesting and challenging of my life, and it's due to civic questions big and small. Some residents have reached out to me to talk about the October 29th trick-or-treat decision. Even though it's just a two-hour window that is now past us for another year, I thought this would be a great opportunity to explain my decision-making process on this, and to fill you in on some of the back story and future intent. This same process I used here is how I approach civic questions like backyard poultry, consumer fireworks, the public safety model, roundabouts, tax-increment financing..anything where a civic decision needs to be made. I hope you'll see that I don't shoot from the hip on any civic question, and am very careful to weigh pros and cons ("In politics, there are no solutions, there are only tradeoffs" - Thomas Sowell). It's hard work, but it's the only proper way to do government. So, here are some (paraphrased) questions about this year's Trick-or-Treat:
What gives the mayor the authority to set the Trick-or-Treat date and time? Why is the government involved at all?
Each year, the Cedar Falls Mayor issues a press release designating the date and time of the city-wide Trick-or-Treating. This has happened for many years in most cities and allows for some crowd control and for police to increase their staffing. I've not found a state law or city code specifically requiring that a day or time be set (the City of Cedar Rapids, for instance, doesn’t announce one). But nearly all cities provide one. The local government's interest is simply for the safety of the public, especially for younger trick-or-treaters, during that two-hour window. Cedar Falls residents are accustomed to a date and time announcement, so the Mayor has made that call.
Doesn't Trick-or-Treat night have to be Halloween night?
It doesn't. In 2022, I've found forty-one Iowa communities (from large cities to tiny villages) that are trick-or-treating on October 29th or 30th. That's a total population of 712,283, or nearly a quarter of Iowa’s population. The Des Moines metropolitan area has hosted “Beggar’s Night” trick-or-treating on October 30th for eighty years. Bondurant just changed their date to the 29th permanently in city code, after overwhelmingly positive feedback from residents. Here are the cities which have Trick or Treating on dates besides the 31st this year:
October 29:
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Aplington (pop 1,101)
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Bondurant (pop 8,035)
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Cedar Falls (pop. 40,388)
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Clinton (pop 24,434)
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Dallas Center (pop. 1,915)
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Green Mountain (pop. 182)
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Princeton (pop. 920)
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Waterloo (pop. 66,941)
October 30:
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Adel (pop. 6,276)
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Altoona (pop. 20, 705)
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Ankeny (pop. 70,287)
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Carlisle (pop.4,201)
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Clemons (pop. 134)
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Clive (pop. 18,814)
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Cummings (pop. 460)
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Des Moines (pop. 212,031)
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Epworth (pop. 2,027)
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Farley (pop. 1,749)
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Gilman (pop. 535)
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Granger (pop. 1846)
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Indianola (pop. 15,747)
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Johnston (pop. 24,195)
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Laurel (pop. 215)
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Le Grand (pop. 905)
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McCallsburg (pop. 360)
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Meskwaki (pop. 1,142)
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Mitchellville (pop. 2,514)
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Norwalk (pop. 13,609)
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Pleasant Hill (pop. 10,860)
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Polk City (pop. 5,751)
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Prairieburg (pop. 156)
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Rhodes (pop. 269)
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Runnells (pop. 453)
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St. Anthony (pop.77)
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Sumner (pop. 2,032)
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Urbandale (pop. 45,923)
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Van Meter (pop. 1,545)
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Walcott (pop. 1,550)
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Waukee (pop. 26,495)
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West Des Moines (pop. 69,792)
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Windsor Heights (pop. 5,170)
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Zearing (pop. 539)
How did you solicit input regarding this idea?
I reached out over the summer to residents through social media platforms and the Cedar Falls Farmer’s Market. The response for trying out Saturday evening was roughly 80% favorable. This was certainly not scientific polling, but I was careful to seek out and weigh opinions from independent sources (i.e. not just the Mayor Facebook page). I also notified the City Council by e-mail in late Summer requesting feedback on a proposal to shift the Trick or Treat date to October 29th; I received only one response from a council member in opposition. Finally, I consulted with city staff (especially the Department of Public Safety) to ensure no red flags or hangups with the proposal. In the end, after weighing the available information, I decided that a majority of Cedar Falls residents would likely be amenable to trying out a Saturday trick-or-treat night this year.
Importantly, I also engaged with Mayor Quentin Hart in Waterloo, who after his own consultations agreed to announce a Saturday night trick-or-treat in Waterloo. Regardless of the perceived support in Cedar Falls, we could only successfully try it if Waterloo did also. From a public safety perspective, it would not have made sense for two separate trick-or-treating nights for our metropolitan area. We needed to be in sync, and fortunately, Waterloo agreed to the proposal in late August.
Why change the date?
I believe in the power of neighborhoods, and in connected neighbors. At the City Council we have talked about resiliency a lot his year -- our ability to mitigate, respond to, and recover from various crises (whether economic, environmental, or energy-related). As mayor, I believe social resiliency is vital that effort. We ought to know our neighbors, and that means building relationships with our neighbors. In times of crisis, we need to be able to turn to one another for support. It's how society is supposed to work. When done well, trick-or-treat night (and surrounding neighborhood parties and other get-togethers) are a fantastic way to build those important relationships -- something that's atrophied in our world of devices and screens.
Additionally, from my own experiences as a parent of two kids, I know how challenging it can be to get kids fed and ready for trick or treating after getting home from work. And then trying to get them to bed, and off to school the next day. I heard the same thing from other parents and guardians. And the classroom sugar crash on November 1st is still a thing. In fact, I found teachers the most supportive voices for a Saturday evening trick-or-treat.
Why change the time?
For the past several years, Cedar Falls has had it's Halloween hours at 6-8pm, regardless of what day of the week it is. While it makes sense on a weeknight to have a later start time (letting the after-work traffic settle down), on a Saturday night it just didn't make sense to me to make kids wait until 6:00 to start trick-or-treating -- especially with sunset being at 6:07. Moving up a half hour with 5:30 to 7:30pm (which is pretty common in our area for a Saturday) seemed like the best approach; an earlier start time allowed about an hour before dark, and an hour after dark, so that kids had both options. I did notice a bunch of kids in their yards anxiously awaiting the 5:30 start time. Perhaps 5pm - 7:30pm might make more sense next year, if the Saturday approach sticks. My neighborhood (Sartori Park) was really busy from 5:30 to 7:00, and then pretty quiet after about 7:20; I've heard that other neighborhoods were busy right up to 7:30. So something we can certainly look at next year. I do like that the 7:30 end time gives plenty of time for a fun scary movie and a reasonable bedtime!
Isn’t Halloween a religious event for some people?
Yes, Samhain is a Celtic tradition. As I understand it, residents who follow Celtic and various pagan traditions celebrate the last day in October as Samhain, which incorporates key rituals and ceremonies leading into November. October 31st marks the transition away from the harvests of Fall and toward the bleak of Winter. It's a celebration of life and death. In changing the date of Trick-or-Treat night, the city has been careful in its messaging that only the city trick-or-treat date has changed ... NOT the date of Halloween. That’s always October 31st, and I am very sensitive to the religious / spiritual implications of that date, particularly for those who celebrate Samhain. As I understand it, neighborhood door-to-door trick-or-treating is not a part of those Celtic and pagan traditions and practices.
How were residents notified about the new date and time?
The date and time were announced much more widely than the details of previous years' trick-or-treat announcements. I issued a joint press release with the City of Waterloo on September 2nd, which was then carried by local media, including the WCF Courier. I also appeared with Acting Police Chief Mark Howard in a KWWL feature on October 20th, as well as in a follow-up Courier article the same week.
Additionally, the notice appeared on page 3 of the city’s Currents Fall newsletter which is delivered to all residents, prominently on the City website, and on posters in a variety of locations around town including City Hall, the Library, and the Rec Center. Beginning in mid-October, the City posted roughly fifty yard signs announcing the date around town at the entrances to neighborhoods (in the same high-visibility locations as the fireworks date signs in June).
Observations on the Saturday evening experience
In my own neighborhood this year (Sartori Park), we had close to 90 trick-or-treaters this year, as opposed to the usual 5 to 10. I also saw quite a few front-yard Halloween parties on Saturday afternoon, prior to sending the kids out trick-or-treating.
The feedback so far has been mostly positive, and I believe that a continued “last Saturday in October” trick-or-treat next year warrants further consideration. The final decision, though, will ultimately be the City Council’s call for next year and beyond.
What happens next year?
For Halloween 2023, I will ask the Parks and Recreation Commission to make a recommendation to the Cedar Falls City Council on whether trick-or-treat night should continue to be the last Saturday in October or if Cedar Falls should revert to Tuesday, October 31, 2023. The City Council would then vote on it as a resolution in Spring 2023 and in every year ahead. This approach will allow the public to express their views at a Council meeting, prior to a final decision being made. A vote in May would provide the public with six months of notice, for planning purposes.
Some final civics takeaways
With the date for trick-or-treat night, my only goal is to do what the majority of residents want. If we do Saturday again, great. If it's October 31st instead, that's great, too. We've got experience with both approaches now and can make an informed choice for the years ahead.
I'm grateful that Cedar Falls has an entrepreneurial spirit. We're willing to try new things! Small, well-informed bets like this one add up to a great quality of life that helps the Cedar Valley to thrive and grow.
Thanks for reading to the end. I appreciate the work you do to be an informed and engaged resident!