After Hurricane Irma damaged Winter Park's official Christmas tree, city officials retired it, and replaced it with a digital tree for 2017. The decision proved largely unpopular, so a traditional tree will be back for the 2018 celebrations, according to an article in the Orlando Sentinel.
The digital tree was 30 feet tall, and made of poles and wires that caused some residents to take to social media to comment on it. One person wrote that her son, who was in 10th grade, called it the “Las Vegas Tree”. Another said it didn't have any true Christmas spirit, adding “a tree should be a tree.”
City officials listened, and reassured residents that a real tree will be part of the next celebrations—and could last as long as 50 years. Dru Dennison, who is the urban forestry manager for the city, said they searched all over the state for the new tree, wanting one that was substantial in size, as well as having branches near the ground. Dennison said a 10-year-old tree from a north Florida nursery was the final choice. The Southern red cedar is 20 feet tall and was planted in Central Park, where the damaged tree still stands, earlier this month.
The digital tree's fate is uncertain. It may be displayed elsewhere this holiday season, though officials have not made a decision on the matter.
Occasions like the annual celebrations offer residents a great opportunity to create Holiday Cards.
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