Horseshoe Casino Cleveland recreates the magic of a Higbee's Christmas

CLEVELAND - When it comes to childhood memories of Christmas, Higbee's Department Store was synonymous with the holiday. The main floor arches sporting garland and lights, transforming the shopping space into a winter experience.

When the Horseshoe Casino Cleveland took over the first four floors of the building, great pains were taken to make the space into a modern gaming hall, while paying homage to the building's storied past.

That now extends to Christmas as the casino this week unveiled its holiday decorations meant to take those who grew up shopping at Higbee's back in time.

"We came down on the bus from Strongsville," recalled Mary Spriggs, who stopped by the casino to both gamble and reminisce. "We had pictures taken with Santa Claus. Higbee's played a big part of my childhood."

The signature feature of the transformation were the addition of the archways covered with greenery and lights.

"They are each 800 pounds. They were custom built for this project and installed over the last week," said casino spokesperson Christina Karas.

The casino also recreated the bells that hung over the shopping floor and decorated one of the main windows on Public Square, though not the corner window made famous by Ralphie in the move "A Christmas Story."

"We look forward to growing this every year and adding more decorations," said Karas.

For Linda Burke of Strongsville, it was worth the special trip.

"This is probably about my fourth time to the casino, but we specifically came down today because we wanted to see the decorations," she said adding they pass the test.