Local businesses came together in Timaru to ‘save Christmas’, with the wider community helping too.

A community-led proposal was instituted to install a felled pine tree, to replace the fire damaged Christmas tree, at the top of the Bay Hill.

Local business leader, Gordon Handy, was relaxing before Christmas after hearing about the Christmas tree being damaged early the same morning and thought “the community has to have a Christmas tree”.

“I was just sitting there and thought how we must be able to do something, so I gave the Mayor, Nigel Bowen, a call and asked him if something was being planned and he said there wasn’t a plan in place.

“I thought, well I could get this to happen, so I reached out to some other businesses, and it didn’t take us long to get a pretty good plan in place.”

A Radiata Pine from the Timaru District Council forestry block was felled and transported to the top of the Bay Hill Piazza, where council took over the installation between rain bursts.

“Hilton Haulage came on board to transport the tree, and the base was re-engineered by Fabtech,” says Mr Handy. Hardie Building 2024 also donated time and resources for the tree to go up.

Mayor Nigel Bowen says this is the definition of the community coming together: “Gordon said it wouldn’t be Christmas for the community without a tree. As this tree was for the community by the community, it was only fitting that the community helped us decorate it with decorations at height being handled appropriately.”