The Board of County Councilors will hold a public hearing at 6 pm Tuesday, Dec. 5, to consider re-adopting the 2017-2018 budget and approving associated property tax levies. The hearing could continue at 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, Dec. 6, if the council needs more time to deliberate. The council adopted the biennial budget in December 2016; it went into effect Jan. 1, 2017. By law, the council is required to approve a mid-biennium review and modification of the two-year budget, a process referred to as “re-adoption.” The purpose of the re-adoption is to: address critical funding needs and new requests, recognize budget-neutral items such as grants, make technical adjustments, and update revenue forecasts, as needed. Details of the recommended budget amendments and re-adoption process can be found at here.

Experience the magic of the holidays next weekend when the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra presents a Holiday Pops Concert filled with celebrated classics and popular favorites. Maestro Salvador Brotons returns to conduct some of the season’s best traditional and contemporary holiday music in a spectacular concert for all ages.

The program showcases selections from the movies Frozen and The Polar Express, as well as Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker Suite, Leroy Anderson’s A Christmas Festival, and Sleigh Ride, Viennese waltzes and polkas, including The Beautiful Blue Danube, Radetzki’s March, Wiener Blut, and Tritsch-Tratsch Polka.

Performances are Saturday, Dec. 9, at 3 p.m., and Sunday Dec. 10, at 7 p.m., at Skyview Concert Hall, 1300 NW 139th St. Tickets are $32 to $50, $10 for students with ID. To learn more and purchase tickets, visit vancouversymphony.org or call 360-735-7278.

This season’s Christmas at Fort Vancouver event will take place on Saturday, Dec. 9, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. At the reconstructed Fort Vancouver, costumed volunteers will portray the sights and sounds of an 1840s fur trade Christmas and New Year’s Day.

This holiday was one of the few times a year that the Hudson’s Bay Company granted leave to all employees. Many spent this respite outdoors hunting or fishing, and all would celebrate together by dining and dancing in the fort. Learn more about the history of the holidays at Fort Vancouver at https://www.nps.gov/articles/holidaysatfova.htm

Visitors will hear caroling by the Madrigal Singers as they enjoy free, warm holiday wassail, games, music, demonstrations, and dancing. There will be several ongoing Victorian-era craft activities, with the park providing materials for visitors to make wooden toy tops, wreaths, and potpourri ornaments. Regular entrance fees to the fort will apply.

Also on Saturday, The visitors center will host a “Celebration of Birds” event from 10 am to 3 p.m., and guest artist Pat Courtey Gold will open a new exhibit at 2 p.m. For more information, including a complete schedule of the day’s events, click here.