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One of our annual traditions the day after Thanksgiving is to try and burn off some calories by walking around the Christkindlmarket at Daley Plaza, then hanging around for the lighting of the Christmas Tree (trivia: it's actually about 130 smaller trees lashed together). So we were a bit surprised when we heard that the lighting ceremony has been moved this year to Tuesday, December 2 at noon. Whaaa? How can you have an event featuring a bazillion lights and fireworks (and boy won't those wake up the downtown cubicle dwellers) in the middle of a weekday? Is anyone even going to be able to tell when the Mayor flips the switch?
"The tree is dark. OOOOHHH, now it's kinda not so dark."
So what gives? A quick call to the Mayor's Office of Special Events gave us an "A-HA!" moment -- it's the budget, stupid. Since only crucial city employees are working the day after Thanksgiving, it had to be moved to a regular work day (the change in time is presumably to curb overtime costs). Boo! Our Christmas sparkle just got a little bit dimmer. Though Tankboy pointed out when he passed us at the Chicagoist water cooler, "Considering how early it gets dark now, it could be pitch black by noon."
Photo of the way it should be from the City of Chicago website
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at least they didn't move it way earlier...
At least they're still doing it at all.
and wouldn't you sound smug if faced with an single mother who had to tell her kids that she won't be home the day after thanksgiving because a bunch of people they don't know want to watch the big fat mayor turn on a light switch.
How much money does this save, or is it just a symbolic gesture of cost-cutting? I would assume 5 or 10 city employees people at most are involved in the actual act of lighting the tree. Those same people will presumably be diverted from their regular duties to help light the tree at 2 on Tuesday. Christkindlmarket and State Street are still going to be busy with the after-Thanksgiving shopping crowd, so traffic control and extra police will be out anyway. So, exactly how much money does the city actually save by doing this?
If a ginormous tree is lit and no one cares, does it still make a sound?