BANGOR, Maine — Originally set for Dec. 6, Bangor’s annual Holiday Tree Lighting event drew a small but enthusiastic crowd on Wednesday at the new and improved West Market Square.
Twenty people — about half of them from local news outlets — gathered for the tree lighting, which was preceded by a countdown led by Bangor City Councilor Gibran Graham, who served as master of ceremonies for the event.
Graham said that while the gathering drew few onlookers this year, it likely was seen by hundreds of people watching from the windows of the buildings surrounding the square.
A storm postponed the lighting ceremony, and it was the reason for the cancellation of the Bangor Rotary Club’s annual Festival of Lights parade.
Among those who braved the rain and wind for the tree lighting were Karena Randall, 17, and her 19-year-old sister, Waneta Randall, both of Bangor.
They said it was the first downtown tree lighting they had attended.
“We’ve always wanted to go, but we haven’t had the time,” Randall said.
“We’ve always gone to the Festival of Lights [parade], so we decided to come to this, and hopefully we’ll go to the [ Downtown Countdown] ball drop,” Bangor’s signature New Year’s Eve event, Karena Randall added.
This year’s holiday tree — a 35 foot tall balsam fir decorated with 3,000 lights — is the first to be set since West Market Square’s overhaul, according to Graham.