Regina man’s Halloween display is ready and waiting

The night of fright is fast approaching and for some, a lot of work has gone into preparing for it.

Many people across the province are going all out with their Halloween decorations this year. Regina’s Dave Kosik is one of those people; he says he changes up his Halloween theme every year.

“Every year, we try to do something different,” he said. “We use a lot of the same props, but we set things up differently, so it’s trying to design what this year is going to look like.

“Another thing that we do every year is we add new stuff or we rebuild the old stuff to look different. This year, we added five new props (and) I’ve still got one I’m completing …

“We try to make it different so if you come to our place every year, you’re going to see something different every year. So that’s what a lot of our preparation time goes into is making sure that we’re unique and different. You’ll see things here you’re not going to see anywhere else.”

This year, Kosik’s display is named the Restless Spirit Cemetery and has a brand new pumpkin monster theme display.

Dave Kosik’s Halloween display in Regina has a pumpkin monster theme this year. (Roman Hayter/980 CJME)

Kosik explained that he and his wife love Halloween.

“My wife and I have been doing this for 12-plus years now, and every year we just keep adding and adding and adding,” said Kosik.

Kosik said it usually takes several days to set up his displays to prepare for the big day.

“I work on things all year long, but to actually set up the display, it takes about a week,” he said. “It’s four to five days to set up the basic stuff, and then it’s always a couple days of tweaking and changing something because it doesn’t look right, and changing lights and moving lights around.

“We want everything to be shining right and things looking good.”

A majority of the props at the Restless Spirit Cemetery are animatronics, meaning they can move independently.

Typically, animatronics wouldn’t survive a Saskatchewan winter, but to fight the elements, Kosik has engineered small heaters inside every prop. They’re controlled by thermostats to help the props withstand the cold and function normally without freezing up.

As for protecting his displays from those who’d prefer to trick rather than treat, Kosik has that covered as well. With everything ranging from a simple fence to motion-activated lights and sensors, he aims to stay two steps ahead of any uninvited guests.

Those wishing to visit Kosik’s Halloween display can do so by visiting 5306 Second Ave. N. All he asks is that people respect his home and props when visiting the display.

“We’ve designated out where people can walk,” he said. “They can walk around the fenceline, (and) take pictures of whatever they like (and) videos. If they want to take pictures of their kids in front of things, that’s fine too.

“We don’t allow people to go in with the props. There’s a walkway up to our house where they can come in and see both sides from there.”

The Restless Spirit Cemetery’s animations will be running on Monday from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. On Halloween night, the lights and animations will be running from 6 p.m. to 9:30 p.m.

Dave Kosik’s Halloween display in Regina is known as the Restless Spirit Cemetery this year. (Roman Hayter/980 CJME)