Last December, thousands of people stood around the I.H. Clubhouse to watch a Christmas drone show light up the sky over IH Park. Lakeland became the first city in West Tennessee to put on a Christmas drone show, and city staff later said the evening's biggest problems were parking and traffic from a crowd larger than anyone had planned for.
On Saturday, Dec. 12, 2026, the show moves to The Lake District off Canada Road. This year it also absorbs the city's annual Christmas Parade, so the two become one free event. Lakeland Currents reported that the Board of Commissioners approved the plan unanimously after the city worked out a partnership with Romspen Investment Corporation, which owns the development.
The obvious reason for the move is parking, but the venue matters too. Over the past two years, The Lake District has gone from a project with few signs of progress to one where the City of Lakeland is a tenant, an event host and a partner. On Dec. 12, many residents will see the development up close for the first time in a while.
What the night itself will look like
What has been announced so far comes from the July board approval:
- Date: Saturday, Dec. 12, 2026
- Place: The Lake District, the mixed-use development along Canada Road at I-40
- Drone show: Sky Elements LLC returns with 250 commercial drones for a 12-minute synchronized show
- Parade: The Lakeland Christmas Parade, with the Lakeland Prep marching band
- Also planned: holiday music, lighting, seasonal décor and family activities, with more to be announced
- Cost: free
The 12-minute length is a practical limit. Mayor Josh Roman told Lakeland Currents that drone battery life caps the show, and that a longer one would require "a backup set of another 250 drones, which would essentially double the price." He also said this year's show will put more weight on the Christmas story while bringing back last year's crowd favorites, including Santa, snowmen and Christmas lights.
The start time, parade route and parking plan have not been published yet. The city's special events page is the place to check as December gets closer.
"I'm truly excited to kick off Lakeland's 50th birthday with this amazing celebration." Mayor Josh Roman, as reported by Lakeland Currents
The mayor's line explains why the venue matters. The city picked this site for the night that opens its 50th birthday year, and the site has been through a lot.
How The Lake District got here
The Lake District never stopped operating, but for a long stretch its story was mostly about ownership and waiting. Here is the sequence in the order it happened:
- May 14, 2024. The mixed-use site went to a courthouse auction. No other bidder appeared, so the lender, TIG Romspen, took ownership.
- November 2024. Romspen hired Cushman & Wakefield to manage the retail space and market the outparcels. The later phases and the residential piece were still uncertain.
- March 2025. The Commercial Appeal reported on efforts to bring tenants into vacant spaces.
- August 2025. The same paper reported little progress since the property went back to the lender.
- February 2026. Construction began on a dedicated office for the Shelby County Sheriff's Office and the City of Lakeland's Parks Department. In the same week, Trilogy Investment Co. bought the townhome land.
- March 2026. The planning commission approved a site plan for a hotel.
- July 2026. The board voted to move Christmas in Lakeland to the site.
The 2026 entries look different from the earlier ones. The first two years were about ownership and marketing. This year brought construction, a land sale, a site plan approval and a public event, and the city has a hand in three of them.
The city is already moving in
The Commercial Appeal reported in May that a 5,000-square-foot end-cap space is being built out for a satellite office of the Shelby County Sheriff's Office and Lakeland's Parks and Recreation Department, next door to Gloss Nail Bar.
The department that runs Lakeland's events will have an office in the same development that hosts the biggest one. That makes The Lake District a site the city plans to use regularly, beyond a single night in December.
What's open there now
The development's own directory still lists the tenants from its 2024 roster. That list reflects 2024, not this fall, so the businesses below are limited to those with current locations listed on their own sites:
| Business | Address on its own site |
|---|---|
| Chick-fil-A | 3423 Lake District Dr. W., opened March 21, 2024 |
| Gloss Nail Bar | Lake District Dr. N., Suite 109 |
| Hollywood Feed | 9845 Lake District Dr. N., Suite 130 |
| StretchLab | 9861 Lake District Dr. N., Suite 105 |
| Lake District Wine & Liquor | Running October 2026 promotions on its site |
If you're planning dinner around the drone show, call ahead. Lakeland's other food center, Lakeland Town Square, also has a newer option. Lakeland Currents reported in June that Ahi Asian Bistro, a family-run restaurant at 9789 Market Green Place South, had opened for dine-in and takeout.
What's coming next
The two private projects announced this year are bigger than any single storefront.
The townhomes. Trilogy Investment Co., a Georgia firm, paid just over $6.7 million for the nearly 20-acre townhome site at the back of the development. The plans call for 109 three- and four-bedroom townhomes, roughly 1,657 to 1,866 square feet, built as rentals and marketed as REV3 at Garner Lake. Lakeland City Manager Emily Harrell said the approved development plan is unchanged, each unit will sit on its own single-family lot, the new owner's long-term goal is to move the units to owner-occupied sales, and the parcels are still legally platted as Willows at the Lake. Six units finished in 2022 will be renovated, and the first residents are projected to move in by late 2026.
The hotel. In March, the planning commission approved a site plan for a four-story, 121-room LivSmart by Hilton on about 2.35 acres. No construction timeline has been announced.
By the time the drones go up, The Lake District could have its first new residents, a city office, and a hotel waiting on a construction schedule.
Getting there along Canada Road
The Lake District is at I-40 and Canada Road, and work continues along that route. The city's Oct. 21 update listed earthwork and drainage north of the Canabridge Road and New Canada Road intersection, with a warning about equipment, truck traffic and noise. The same update put two items on the agenda: engineering inspection services, and tentative approval of an APAC-Tennessee contract to resurface Canada Road from south of I-40 to north of US-64. Neither item came with a construction schedule.
That update also includes a smaller December date. Young Artist Spotlight submissions are due Nov. 12, and awards are Dec. 3, nine days before the parade.
Whether you're watching The Lake District's next tenants, the townhomes opening on Garner Lake, or how the Canada Road work changes the drive, our agents follow these changes closely. Ware Jones can explain what each new piece means for the homes around it. Connect with a Memphis neighborhood expert.
