Summerlin celebrates Halloween

Residents of the master-planned community of Summerlin celebrated Halloween and the fall harvest holidays with a Pumpkin Festival Oct. 13 at The Gardens Park.

The Pumpkin Festival was the first held in Summerlin and it drew more than 3,000 residents, according to Lezlie Barnson-DeNardin, director of community relations for The Summerlin Council, the arm of the Summerlin Community Association that oversees social, cultural and recreational events for residents.

The festival included a hay maze, petting zoo, bounce house, costume parade, scarecrow-building contest and a patch from which visitors could select and buy pumpkins. The Las Vegas Farmers Market was also on hand selling home-grown and homemade goodies, including fruit and produce, flowers, corn-on-the-cob and barbecue dinners. And the art of pumpkin carving was demonstrated by Chef Chanh Boupha and students of Summerlin-based Le Cordon Bleu College of Culinary Arts Las Vegas.

"There's something cheerful about bright orange pumpkins," Barnson-DeNardin said of the festival's ambiance.

"The fall holiday season is in full swing in Summerlin where holiday traditions play an important role for the community's families," she said. "Seasonal celebrations, such as Pumpkin Festival, easily become family favorites - providing the community's families with fun ways to celebrate the holidays together -- right in their backyard. We are confident Pumpkin Festival is on its way to becoming an October classic in Summerlin."

According to resident Kim Hammond, mother of 3-year-old Chloe Kate and 3-month-old Kaden, the Summerlin Pumpkin Festival was a great way to usher in the fall holiday.

"The bright orange pumpkins put us in the mood for Halloween," Hammond said. "Not every community marks the holidays like Summerlin does, and it's one more reason we love living here."

Developed by The Howard Hughes Corp., an affiliate of General Growth Properties Inc., Summerlin began to take shape in 1990 and is a 22,500-acre master-planned community located along the western rim of the Las Vegas Valley.

The community features a number of amenities and is currently home to more than 95,000 residents. With about 7,500 acres still to develop, including its urban core, Summerlin Centre, Summerlin continues to unfold.

The community is home to more than 100 neighborhood and village parks, more than 150 completed miles of the Summerlin trail system, houses of worship, shopping centers, medical and cultural facilities, business parks and more than 100 actively selling floor plans.

Homes are available in a variety of styles -- from single-family homes to townhomes, condominiums and lofts -- priced from the upper $200,000s to more than $2 million. Custom home sites in The Ridges are priced from the $500,000s.

For more information on Summerlin, visit summerlin.com or call 888-898-5015.