Downtown DeKalb is jing-jing-jingling its way into the holiday season with its refurbished holiday decorations along Lincoln Highway.

DeKalb has used the wreath theme in the holiday decorations for at least 28 years, said Dan Grych, manager of DeKalb Gallery, 161 E. Lincoln Highway.

This year there is something different in the air.

The decorations that have been a mainstay of DeKalb for years received a refurbishing over the past summer, said Mark Espy, assistant director of public works for DeKalb.

The garland had faded, wiring became brittle and the decorations were in all-around bad shape, he said. The City Council voted over the summer to fix up the decorations.

The company that refurbished the decorations, Holiday Decor of Iowa, offered the city a savings of $10,000 because business was slow over the summer, he said.

The refurbishing work took about a month to complete.

The city chose refurbishing the old decorations instead of buying new ones because it was about 50 percent cheaper, Espy said. The decorations were practically brand-new once refurbished, he said.

The holiday decorations now grace utility poles throughout downtown.

“We like to start around the eighth [of November] and have it all finished by Thanksgiving,” Espy said.

The work took about two weeks to complete because crews with other responsibilities could not dedicate all of their time to the holiday work, he said.

Downtown business owners were pleased with the refurbished decorations.

“I think they are beautiful,” said Debbie Witmer, co-owner of O’Leary’s Irish Pub & Grill, 260 E. Lincoln Highway. “They encourage people to stop and stroll around and see what we have to offer.”

The refurbished decorations have been a success in the eyes of Grych.

“I have been here 28 years and this is the best they’ve looked,” he said.

Grych said he thought shoppers noticed the small things in DeKalb, including the holiday wreaths.