POULSBO — Eight years after making his first appearance in Little Norway, Father Christmas will have a new residence as he prepares to spend the holidays downtown.

The original home was adorned with Norwegian figurines and was the brainchild of Betty Walmesky, who owned Things Northwest, said Historic Downtown Association beautification chair Jim Wise.

“She was really excited about downtown, so we got a group together to do it,” Wise said, noting that without Walmesky’s persistence, Father Christmas might not have become a reality.

This past summer, a group led by the HDPA came together to look into building a new home for the holiday icon and a local architect took an interest in the project, Wise said.

“The building is designed by Wayne Lamont and Lamont Design Inc., and his wife, Connie, does interiors,” Wise said.

The original building was steeped in Norwegian symbols and when Connie Lamont came up with the color scheme for the structure, it was a pleasant surprise, he said.

“The color scheme she is using is all traditional Norwegian colors,” he said with a smile as workers put the finishing touches on the building Monday morning.

Larry Hove has been instrumental in the construction of the building, which features a modular design, Wise said.

“It’s been put together with bolts instead of screws, so it can be set and then taken down,” he said, noting that Hill Worldwide Moving is providing storage for the building as well as trucks to move it from place to place.

Even though Mor-N Store has moved out of downtown, owner Julie Lohrer is helping out to give the building an extra Christmas feel, he said.

Two red pots with four-foot Alberta spruce trees will be placed on either side of the house, Wise said.

“I think it’s a great look,” he said. “Wayne Lamont has given it a Norwegian look, but kind of a fairy tale look at the same time.”

When Father Christmas opens the door at noon Nov. 25, visitors will be able to share in what, in Wise’s assessment, has been a great effort.

“It marks the end of the beautification of downtown, but there’s really been a wonderful effort behind this,” he said.

Father Christmas will appear in downtown at the Havne Veien area from noon to 4 p.m. every Friday, Saturday and Sunday from Nov. 25 to Christmas Eve.