Residents of a Lincolnshire town called their Christmas decorations a "disgrace" after the council spent an eyewatering £20k on an artificial tree with no festive lights.
Boston Borough Council said the lack of lights was down to funding cuts, with the town Mayor, Councillor Anne Dorrian, calling the situation a "complete and utter omnishambles," LincolnshireLive reported.
But locals aren't happy with the council's lack of festive cheer and said the town has "lost its soul."
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One resident, 74-year-old Terry Dawson, said: "It's the way things are going now in Boston, everything seems to be negative. Our council don't seem to have a voice in putting Boston forward.
"I'm fed up of hearing about other places, some smaller than Boston, getting more effort and energy. If I was to use the word 'dead', I think that would just about sum it up.
"It's a market town that's always had a lot of good character and it's just disappeared. The town has lost its soul, it really has."
Others slammed the decision to spend such a vast amount of money on a Christmas tree with no lights or decorations.
Resident Kaye Brown called the amount of money spent on the new tree a "disgrace".
She said: "It's a poor show, it's not attracting people to the town or getting anyone in the Christmas spirit.
"When the volunteer electricians did the lights, there was a really good show on which I think attracted thousands of people to the town centre, but where is everyone this year? It's very sad.
"I hope they accept the volunteers' offer next year and get it back to where it should be. It's nothing like it used to be."
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Meanwhile local resident Helen Wright, 59, added: "One late night shopping I heard a little girl crying saying 'where are the Christmas lights?'
"The tree looks rubbish. It's all just really bad."
Councillor Dorrian revealed in a document shared on Facebook that the 8ft false tree will cost taxpayers an eye-watering £22,290 over the course of two years.
The mayor said the document had been shared in a bid to be "transparent" with Boston residents.
Leader of Boston Borough Council, Councillor Paul Skinner, said: "We appreciate and recognise that the lack of Christmas lights has drawn criticism from a number of people in the town.
"It is, however, important for people to understand that cuts to funding was agreed by Members as part of the annual Budget in 2016, Boston Borough Council agreed to continue funding the tree and that the Boston Town Area Committee (BTAC) would raise funds for the lights.
"As part of that agreement with BTAC, the group of volunteers were advised that they would have to be self-funded in three years, if the group broke up for any reason the lights would be returned to BTAC.
"It’s never an easy decision for any Council to cut funding. But in order for our vital services to continue working the best they can for residents, difficult decisions have to be made and unfortunately, this is one of them."
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