Rockefeller Center tree cut down Thursday

A massive seventy-six-foot Norway spruce is scheduled for removal on Thursday morning in central New York. Crews will cut down the tree on a private property in West Edmeston before beginning its long journey south. New York State Police advised motorists to anticipate heavier than normal traffic along state Route 8 while transport operations get underway.

The tree was donated by the Decker family and chosen by Rockefeller Center head gardener Erik Pauze. Officials noted that the seventy-five-year-old spruce weighs roughly eleven tons and spans fifty feet across at its widest point. Transport teams will load the heavy trunk onto a specialized flatbed truck for the two-hundred-mile trip toward Midtown Manhattan.

Workers will deliver the evergreen to Rockefeller Center Plaza between Fifth and Sixth avenues on Saturday morning. A public welcome event featuring family activities, live music, and photo opportunities will mark its safe arrival in the city. City residents and tourists gather annually to watch the massive timber take center stage ahead of the busy winter holiday season.

Following its placement, technicians will wrap the expansive branches in more than fifty thousand multicolored LED lights spanning five miles of wire. Crews will secure a heavy nine-hundred-pound Swarovski crystal star at the very peak of the spruce. The glittering display serves as a major cornerstone of winter celebrations across the five boroughs.

The official tree lighting ceremony is scheduled for December 2 during a live television broadcast from Midtown. Visitors can view the illuminated evergreen daily in the central plaza until the seasonal display closes in mid-January.