from “le détroit” · the strait
Detroit's Christmas tree arrives at Campus Martius Park on Nov. 4, lifted into place by crane during the lunch hour. The free 23rd annual tree lighting follows on Nov. 20.
Downtown's lunch crowd gets a show on Nov. 4.
Between 11:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. that Wednesday, a crane will hoist Detroit's holiday tree into place at Campus Martius Park. Anyone downtown that morning is invited to watch it go up, which makes for an oddly satisfying lunch break that still gets you back to your desk on time. For a few minutes, Woodward turns into an outdoor stage, and the star is a tree swinging from a cable.
The tree is delivered by Amazon. A crane lifts it into place at Woodward Avenue near Monroe Street.
The lift is only the warm-up. The 23rd annual Detroit Tree Lighting follows on Friday, Nov. 20, and the celebration is free. The Downtown Detroit Partnership produces the event, and the DTE Foundation presents it.
Once the tree is lit, expect live music from national and local performers, figure skating shows on the rink, food trucks, and festive lighting displays across the park.
There's some real history holding all this up. The Partnership, founded in 1922, has turned the lighting into one of downtown's dependable season openers. Campus Martius was dedicated in 2004 and covers 1.2 acres around the Woodward Fountain.
So there are two chances to be part of it. If you work or wander downtown on Nov. 4, the midday lift is a short, free window to watch the season's first big piece of staging click into place. If you'd rather have the full production, Nov. 20 brings the music, the skaters, and the food trucks, and it won't cost anything to show up.
One dispatch a week. No tracking, no filler. Free, always.