West Philadelphia haunted alley transports trick-or-treaters to a scary movie
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Despite it being chilly in the Philadelphia region, trick-or-treaters were out in force for Halloween on Tuesday night.
In West Philadelphia, they were invited to take a spooky stroll into a ghost tunnel. It wasn't your typical haunted house, it's a haunted alleyway. The creator behind this poured his soul into this spooky set-up.
When you walk in — it's like you teleported from West Philadelphia into a haunted realm -- it screams scary movie.
CBS Philadelphia took the scare as a challenge and headed in Halloween night.
Creator Timothy Reimer wasn't sure at first if his elaborate Halloween alley display would be a neighborhood hit.
"Are people going to walk down a dark alley in the city? Maybe, maybe not. But surprisingly the answer was yes," Reimer said.
Kids and adults flooded the haunted alley along 51st and Catharine Street. And it was decorated to a T.
"Seven to eight years ago we decided to try to get Halloween happening on our block. So for the first couple of years, we would have to sit on the stoop and yell at children as they passed by," Reimer said.
And here they are years later.
Reimer said he always dreamed of being "that house" on the block that goes all out.
"I always loved Halloween. My parents couldn't put on something like this taking care of a bunch of kids, and the best experience I would get would be going to whatever neighborhood haunted house that someone put on," he said.
Reimer said it's worth it to give back to the kids and give them something special to look forward to.
"Seeing all these children amped up and excited -- it charges us up for the winter," Reimer said. "It's like good medicine for the soul I guess. Now we are stuck doing it at this point. We don't have a choice. We can't let the kids down."
It took a few years to gather and collect the amount of decorations. To bring it to life, it took about six weeks to put all together.
