PARK SLOPE — Park Slope ushered in the holiday season with its 15th annual tree-lighting ceremony on the corner of Fifth Avenue and Fourth Street outside Washington Park’s J.J. Byrne Playground on Saturday. 

The festivities, hosted by the Park Slope Fifth Avenue Business Improvement District (BID), kicked off at 4:30 p.m. with free, family-friendly events on the pedestrian-friendly Fourth Street Plaza. 

The cherished holiday tradition coincided with Small Business Saturday, encouraging holiday shoppers to buy locally. Park Slope’s Fifth Avenue, dubbed the “coolest street” in New York City and “13th Coolest Street in the World” by Time Out, is home to 520 businesses and Joanna Tallantire, executive director of the BID, told Brooklyn Eagle, that Fifth Avenue businesses had a lot to offer. 

“[The tree lighting] is a great way to kick off the holiday season, but reminds people that our small shops and our local restaurants are unique,” Tallantire said. “They have great service, they have great products, but also, when you shop locally, you support your whole community.”

Mark Caserta, vice president of Small Business Support of the Brooklyn Chamber of Commerce, explained that Brooklyn has around 63,000 small businesses and encouraged holiday shoppers to visit stores in different neighborhoods.