Photo: Shaun Penner / EverythingGP staff

By Shaun Penner

"Tree Drop"

County to provide Public Works support for Hythe Christmas Tree festival

Nov 20, 2021 | 7:00 AM

The County of Grande Prairie will help continue a Hythe tradition this holiday season, as council has approved public works support for the annual Christmas “Tree Drop Festival” in the community.

Reeve Leanne Beaupre says with this being the first holiday Hythe will spend as a hamlet in the County after dissolution earlier this year, council opted to offer a similar level of support to what the village did for the Hythe and District Agricultural Society to put the event on this year.

That support from County Public Works will include placing and removing the tree stand, installing barricades and removing the tree after the holiday season.

“That’s really what council approved… was that they would continue with the practice that (Hythe) Public Works had done for the village,” said Beaupre. “(County) Public Works will do the same: putting up barricades, putting the tree stand in place and removing the tree after the festival.”

The festival has taken place in 2018 and 2019 but was in question this year after the village dissolved into a hamlet in the County on July 1, as well as having to cancel the helicopter drop due to the pandemic in 2020.

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Division 7 Councillor, and former Hythe Mayor, Brian Peterson says with the support to hold the festival secured, the ag. society can now begin planning the festival for this year.

It is not yet known when the festival could happen or in what scope. County Council was told the possibility for a helicopter tree drop this year was eliminated due to the short time frame for 2021. Instead, the tree would likely have to be trucked in if the festival proceeds.

EverythingGP has reached out to the Hythe and District Agricultural Society for further details and we hope to have more next week.

Beaupre adds the event in Hythe builds on other community holiday initiatives established in other hamlets in the County.

“The tree drop is a community builder, and it certainly encourages community spirit, and the County of Grande Prairie continues to support that,” said Beaupre. “We certainly wish them well with their event.”

Council also directed Administration to share information about the Community Assistance Grant program with the Hythe & District Agricultural Society to apply for any funding for the 2022 event and beyond.