No Christmas tree at Macy's in Boston's Downtown Crossing this year
BOSTON - A festive tradition in Downtown Boston is taking a holiday hiatus. There is no Christmas tree at the Macy's store in Downtown Crossing. The large tree has been a staple of the neighborhood for years.
"Macy's, for a variety of reasons on their end, decided not to move forward with the tree this year," said Michael Nichols, President of the Downtown Boston Improvement District (BID). "Probably a chance it comes back in a future year. They had changes in staffing and so on, which led to them not having one downtown this year."
"When the Christmas tree was back there, it was a like, 'Oh my God!' Especially, at night," remembers shopper Ricardo Mead. "Christmas is spirit and love. Let's bring it back!"
The tree is funded fully by Macy's, but its unveiling has been a point of large-scale celebration in the city. With the tree not happening, BID put their financial efforts behind the Boston Common Christmas tree celebration. BID has put up more holiday decorations in the city than ever before.
"We have over 500 Christmas wreathes hanging from the light poles of downtown," said Nichols. "Nearly 100 of these trees were brought in and decorated. We have hundreds of hours of programming that is happening throughout the downtown."
In January, BID hopes to unveil a new outdoor public art installation for the winter. Right now, they are being coy the details.
"Certainly, it will be something people would enjoy coming out to see as art downtown in the winter," said Nichols.
