A visit to the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree is one of New York City’s most treasured holiday rituals, and behind every sky-high stunner chopped down and brought to the Big Apple at Christmastime stands just one man with an eye for perfection. Erik Pauze is the person responsible for selecting the tree that will represent Christmas at Rockefeller Center each year. The 58-year-old Long Islander disclosed that he scouts “easily” 100 trees in a 6-state radius each year, saying fir-geddaboudit! to any number of lesser specimens before determining exactly which one is ready for prime time. The 2024 winner is a 74-foot-tall, 11-ton Norway Spruce that’s 43 feet in diameter. The awe-inspiring ornament hails from West Stockbridge, Mass., and it’s the first time a tree has come from Massachusetts since 1959. Pauze says the trees must be judged sturdy and symmetrical enough to handle a whopping 50,000 holiday lights. The logistics of getting the tree ready to go — feeding it, checking growth, and the technicalities for cutdown day — is a lengthy process. The average fresh tree price ranges between $80 and $250, depending on where they’re bought. Fortunately, all of the trees used in the Rockefeller Center Christmas display are donated. After all, you can't put a price tag on the prestige and bragging rights you’ll have if your tree is the one selected.
