Holiday tree arrives with joy in downtown Santa Barbara

SANTA BARBARA, Calif. - The 42-foot Santa Barbara Downtown Organization holiday tree has arrived on State Street as part of the ongoing effort to keep the spirit of the season alive during a pandemic.

It came in at 9 a.m. Tuesday after a drive from Grants Pass, Oregon where it was harvested from a sustainable tree farm. There, for every tree removed, four others are planted.

The tree is sponsored by Consumer Fire Products, Inc. out of Goleta. The company has routinely covered the costs of the tree and worked in coordination with the City of Santa Barbara Parks and Recreation - Forestry Division to have it installed. The Big Red Crane company handled the logistics of lifting the tree and placing it into a special sleeve in the street.

Consumer Fire Owner Irene Rhodes said during these stressful time, her family and company wanted to bring joy to the town.

"Where people are coming outdoors downtown to do some shopping, we want to help draw for the small businesses that are suffering and if we can bring a little bit of joy this year that is really our goal and  hopefully we can achieve that," Rhodes said.

The tree is normally lit during the annual holiday parade, but that will not be taking place this year. Instead it has been lit earlier.

City workers added the star topping and strings of lights that will be illuminated throughout the holiday season.

Rhodes also says her sponsorship money for the parade will go to the Unity Shoppe.