This was the scene at Daley Plaza late Wednesday afternoon, as mayor Rahm Emanuel and ABC7's Val Warner and Mike Caplan lit Chicago's official 2011 Christmas Tree. A 55-foot-tall Colorado spruce brought in from the Spangler home in Western Springs, where it was threatening the foundations, it's s all of a piece.
click image for larger view
It wasn't always so. Not that long ago, the Daley Center Chistmas tree soared over a hundred feet tall, a construction project of over a hundred individual trees carefully stitched together to appear as one. Check out our photo essay from 2007, It's the Great Chicago Christmas Tree (Some Assembly Required).
6 comments:
The compound tree Christmas display of yore was an extravagance of fearsome proportions. I walk across the Daley Plaza daily, and used to marvel at the large crew of city (or were they county?) employees and equipment who would spend a good ten days on each end erecting and then dismantling the great compound tree. I don't know if anyone ever ran the numbers to determine what this cost the public, but I suspect it would have been enough to activate the Grinch in anyone but a union steward.
The new tree is real, realistic and porportioned to what the Christmas Spirit should be... focused within our hearts not on our wallets.
I applaud using a single tree, especially when the chosen tree is slated for removal anyway. Bravo Chicago!
I visited Daley Plaza over the weekend and heard many comments as I waited in the thick crowds: "That tree looks pathetic!", "That tree is old school", "They must have saved a bundle on the tree".
I suppose you could say the tree looks puny next to the skyscrapers around it, but it looks A-OK to me. In this day and age, saving a bundle isn't a bad thing is the end result is still handsome.
Last year's donated tree looked beautiful. I am very disappointed with this year's tree. It looks half dead and is not full enough at all. My 5 ft living room tree would have looked better in the Plaza.
Amazing and very moving video.. You can actually feel the excitement :)
Do you have any idea if they're using artificial christmas trees or real ones?
That is pretty cool, all the services that are available. I was wondering, I've been looking into a Chicago tree removal service and was wondering which this is and if you had a good experience. Thanks!!
Post a Comment