Waterford holds 'Trunk-or-Treat'

WATERFORD -- There were plenty of treats in downtown Waterford on Wednesday night.

But among the biggest and best on Halloween night were the renovated streets, sidewalks, benches, bike racks and landscaping as the eastern Stanislaus County city celebrated the reopening of its downtown area.

Coinciding with Halloween, the $1.3 million project debuted before hundreds of residents and "Trunk-or-Treaters," who gathered to check out the new digs and gather candy from residents who were passing them out from the trunks of their vehicles.

Musicians performed, people marveled and children in costumes went trunk-to-trunk to gather their treats.

Jill Weichert, who was handing out candy with her husband, Rob, said she was thrilled that so many people made it to the celebration.

The grand opening started about 6 p.m.

The renovation began earlier this year with the goal of attracting and keeping businesses downtown, which had a 30 percent vacancy rate.

Most of the money for the project came from federal grants.