The first of what Columbus mayor Robert Smith hopes will be an annual event will be held Jan. 8 at 6 p.m. when the city hosts a Christmas Tree Bonfire.
“I met with the (city) department heads Monday morning and everybody loved the idea,” Smith said. “It seems like a much better idea than taking the trees to the landfill, and it will be something residents can enjoy. Everybody was on board from the start.”
Smith said residents can drop off their Christmas trees — minus decorations, of course — at the city’s public works facility at Martin Luther King Jr. Drive and Bell Avenue, near the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department, from 7 a.m. until 3:30 p.m. from Monday through Thursday.
“We don’t know how many people will drop off their trees, but hopefully, a lot of people will choose to participate,” the mayor said. “The more trees, the better the bonfire.”
Smith and Columbus Fire & Rescue Chief Martin Andrews said the bonfire will be staged on a portion of cleared land the city owns on The Island. Not only does the location provide a safe area for the fire, it also provides plenty of vantage points to view the bonfire, especially the Old Highway 82 pedestrian bridge, which overlooks the site. Across the river, in the area adjacent to the Riverwalk amphitheater, is also a good location to watch, Smith noted.
“This came together really fast,” Smith said. “It will be a good trial run for future bonfires. We may try to see if Nancy Carpenter (of the Columbus-Lowndes Convention and Visitors Bureau) can put up some tables and serve hot chocolate. That’s just one idea.”
Smith said he also hopes the bonfire can be used as a means of helping local agencies who cater to the poor.
Helping Hands, a local food pantry, will be present to collect donations of canned food and money.
While the idea of using discarded Christmas trees for community bonfires is a new idea for Columbus, several other towns in other parts of the country have been holding Christmas tree bonfires for years, including Salem and Groton in Massachusetts.
Slim Smith is a columnist and feature writer for The Dispatch. His email address is [email protected].
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