Old Forge's Borough Building Heads Into Snow Forge Season With Its Senior Center Open Again

In one of the Snow Forge photos people keep sharing, Santa stands with a little boy in front of the Old Forge Borough Building. The building is 310 South Main Street, and for most of the year it is where Old Forge pays bills and holds meetings. On the first Sunday in December it becomes the backdrop for the borough's biggest free event. This year that Sunday is Dec. 6, and the building now has a published senior center calendar for the weeks in between. Its senior center reopened on Sept. 2 after sitting empty since the pandemic.

A 1963 Building That Keeps Taking On New Work

The Borough Municipal Building has added jobs over six decades. The Times-Tribune reported in 2023 that it opened in 1963, picked up an attached two-floor senior center in 1989, and went through a renovation from 2020 to 2022. The senior center space had closed after the pandemic. At the time, the borough's plan was to remodel it for older adults' lunches, games, meetings, exercise and computer lessons.

Snow Forge has been held for 12 years, and for most of that stretch half of this building was either running or waiting to reopen. This December, both halves are in use.

What Reopened on Sept. 2

The borough's grand opening flyer invited the public in on a Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. It promoted socialization, fitness, resources and local food, along with make-your-own mocktails and a prize wheel. It also credits United Neighborhood Centers as a supporter. The Pennsylvania Department of Aging's statewide directory lists the Old Forge Senior Citizens Center at 310 South Main.

Within four weeks the center was running on a published schedule. On Sept. 30 the borough posted an October Senior Center calendar and, the same day, advertised for a Senior Center Coordinator. Before the opening, the 2023 plan had borough administration overseeing the center and hoping to hire a coordinator. The September job posting shows that part of the plan moving ahead.

If you have a parent or neighbor who used the old center, the borough's news page is where the monthly calendars are being posted. For days and activities, go to the calendar itself. Don't count on the old routine.

Snow Forge Is the Building's Busiest Day

Snow Forge is set for Sunday, Dec. 6, 1 to 5 p.m. on Main Street. The Lackawanna County Visitors Bureau listed the 2025 edition at 310 South Main Street and called it free and family-friendly. Organizers say everything is free: entertainment, crafts, some refreshments, horse-and-carriage rides and a 5x7 professional photo with Santa.

Here's how the official Snow Forge site lays out the afternoon:

• All afternoon: photos with Santa, DJs, holiday crafts, games and a s'mores station
• Winter Magic: ice carving, storytime with Mrs. Claus and trackless train rides
• Santa's Village: 65+ local craft vendors selling handmade gifts and treats
• Evening: the Santa Parade, fireworks and the Christmas tree lighting, which starts at 4:30 p.m.

Sunset comes early on the first Sunday of December, so most of the afternoon happens in daylight and the last hour belongs to the tree. If the lighting is the part your family cares about most, get to Main Street before 4:30. The crafts and train rides fill the earlier hours.

The event has held its size. In 2022, WBRE/WYOU reported dozens of vendors, wagon rides, and Santa and Mrs. Claus on Main Street, and said the event had run nine years, missing one because of COVID. In 2025, WBRE/WYOU's coverage described crowds in the hundreds, with a petting zoo, a bonfire with s'mores, train rides and Santa.

Volunteers Run It, With a County Grant

Snow Forge is organized by a volunteer committee. The organizers' About page lists nine "Snow Forge Elves," four "Merry Makers" and one "Jack Frost of All Trades." In its 2025 report, WBRE/WYOU quoted committee member Jenna Shotwell on using the day to showcase local businesses.

A Lackawanna County Community Arts and Culture Grant helps pay for the event. The site also takes donations by email and through a Venmo handle, @Snow-Forge-18518. That mix keeps a 65-vendor afternoon free at the gate. A year-round committee also keeps it booked.

The vendor page shows how that booking works. Applications go through a linked form, and the 2026 list is still being updated. Names already on it include 1730 Soap, Bella's Biscuits, Lou's Mini Doughnuts and the Old Forge HS PTSO. The homepage promises more than 65 vendors, and the posted roster is shorter for now, so treat it as a preview that will keep growing. Local makers and school groups who want a table should go to the vendor page now, ahead of December.

Getting to Main Street With Bridge Street Still Closed

Getting to the borough building is harder than it used to be for anyone coming from across the Lackawanna River. PennDOT's May 7, 2026 update says the Bridge Street bridge over the river stays closed to vehicles, with reopening expected in 2027. You can still reach businesses and homes on Bridge Street on the north side of the closure, from Main Avenue to Howard Street. Drivers on the south side have to take the posted detour around to the north side.

PennDOT's project page identifies the bridge as Route 3017, between Lonesome Road and Howard Street, and its detour uses local streets including Main Street. So Snow Forge's Main Street is carrying detour traffic this year. The event page names Main Street and a Santa Parade, but it doesn't publish a parade route or road closures. If you're coming from the south side, plan on the detour and give yourself extra time before the 4:30 tree lighting. Watch the Snow Forge Facebook event for closure details as Dec. 6 gets closer.

The Next Civic Project Has Funding, Not a Site

The borough's next public space is still on paper. On Sept. 15, Sen. Marty Flynn's office announced a $77,724 Local Share Account grant to Old Forge Borough to build a dog park. The money covers construction, equipment and engineering. The Times-Tribune's Sept. 25 roundup reported the same award. Neither one names a park, a layout or a construction date.

The senior center followed the same order, with plans reported in 2023 and a grand opening on South Main in 2026. Dog owners waiting for the site to be announced should watch the borough's own posts at oldforgeborough.com. The flyer, calendar and job posting for the senior center all appeared there first.

Many of our clients own homes and rentals around Old Forge's South Main Street, and a lot of what makes it feel like home happens at the borough building and on Snow Forge Sunday. If you're thinking about what the Bridge Street closure, the reopened senior center or a future dog park could mean for a property you own or want to buy here, Luxe Homes Real Estate can go through it with you block by block. Schedule an Investment or Property Consultation, and we'll start with the streets you know best.