Laura Glesby Photo
Two weeks after a gusty rainstorm felled the first Christmas Tree on the New Haven Green, a shorter and sturdier replacement arrived on Wednesday.
The new tree, a Norway Spruce, is 35 feet tall, according to Parks Director Bill Carone. The previous tree, also a Norway Spruce, reached 75 feet in the air.
City parks employee Jeff Ryan, who spearheaded the operation on the ground Wednesday, said the new, squatter tree will more likely weather a storm. “The bigger and wider a tree is, the more wind it’s gonna catch,” he explained.
The original Christmas tree — officially referred to as an ecumenical “holiday tree” by city government — fell when a mid-November storm ripped one of its anchors out of the ground, according to Ryan.
That anchor, a concrete deadman block, has been re-welled into the ground. Ryan said the same anchors have been used throughout his 24 years of setting up the Green’s Christmas tree.
Along with the tree, the parks department set up a metal Hanukkiah, a symbol of Hanukkah with lights for each of the Jewish holiday’s eight days.
The new Christmas tree was driven from an anonymous provider outside the city. A team of a dozen tree trimmers lifted the tree using a crane …
… and gradually dangled it into a hole in the ground.
Once the tree was partially in, a pair of trimmers gently unfurled its branches, which had been tied up for transportation.
One of those trimmers, C.J. Zemke (pictured), wore a santa-themed mask with a long white beard to bring the holiday cheer.
Then, a team of trimmers ensured that the tree was roped into hooks on the ground, connected to the buried anchors.
Steve Thomas (pictured) watched the scene from the fountain nearby. He often comes to the Green, he said, and recalls seeing the original tree “lying flat.”
“It’s good to see,” he said of the replacement. “Bring a little cheer.”
“I’d like to see the Rockefeller Center tree one day,” he added wistfully.
Some members of New Haven’s crew have actually trained by observing the setup of the iconic Rockefeller tree in New York City, according to trimmer Maurice Gladney (pictured).
This year, Gladney’s role will mainly involve setting up the tree’s multicolored lights with the help of a bucket truck, he said.
Gladney said he’s excited to “bring something new to 2020.” He took the collapse of the original tree as a sign that this tumultuous year needs a fresh start. “Just wipe the whole slate clean,” he laughed.
There is nothing to lure me downtown anymore-- the spirit is missing. It is a shadow of the past downtown I knew and loved. But I will drive by and enjoy what I know will be a lovely tree.