Stonington — The Ocean Community Chamber of Commerce marked the third annual lighting of the Stonington Lobster Trap Tree with a bigger, better tree that celebrates the community.

“This landmark art installation is a source of great pride for our community,“ First Selectman Danielle Chesebrough told the nearly 1,000 people gathered at Town Dock on Saturday.

The tree lighting showcased months of work by chamber staff and volunteers, as well as the contributions of residents and businesses, in what has become an annual tradition drawing thousands of visitors to the internationally recognized holiday display.

Lisa Konicki, Ocean Community Chamber of Commerce president, said she loved the original 25-foot 2021 tree that the British Broadcasting Corp. news called “quirky,” but that the addition of 30 traps give this year’s 35-foot tree a more perfectly conical, Christmas tree shape.

“This year it is clearly a Christmas tree, but it was kind of funny, and it was adorable,” she said earlier this month.

Named one of “18 amazing Christmas trees around the world” by the BBC, which listed it alongside such iconic trees as the Rockefeller Center tree in New York City, the Trafalgar Square tree in London, and the Vatican City tree, the Lobster Trap Tree gained international recognition in 2021 and attracted visitors from as far away as Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and New York.

The bottom tier of the tree, constructed of 450 lobster traps and decorated with 454 buoys and thousands of multi-colored LED lights, holds 40 buoys painted by children in Stonington at a coveted annual event the chamber hosts and pays for at the Stonington Community Center.

The second tier of the tree holds buoys that celebrate life events like engagements and weddings, which are sometimes commissioned as a surprise for couples to find when they visit the tree, but it also holds this year’s 11 buoys that memorialize loved ones who have died, including a local father, a husband, and a beloved dog.

“These are some of the most personal buoys of all,” she said.

The rest are a combination of sponsored buoys and artist-donated buoys, 140 of which will be auctioned in mid-winter to support the project.

While the buoys are a big draw to visitors walking around the tree to admire them or find their own, Konicki also encourages guests to step inside to see illuminated interior of the structure, which has been the site of thousands of social media photos and even marriage proposals over the last two years.

This year’s tree also boasts a new 5.5-foot-tall tree topper fabricated by Thavenet Machine Company in Pawcatuck.

The new commercial grade, lighted anchor recreates the original sculpture local children helped bring to life. It sat atop the tree for almost two full seasons before it had to be taken down shortly before the close of last year’s display due to wear and cracking.

Costs for the holiday display have come down substantially from the initial $45,000 price tag due to reusing materials like traps, lights and the door, but even the reduced costs are extensive. Konicki, who put in over 1,000 hours on the project this year, did not yet have a total for 2023, but listed some expenses including new traps and buoys, permits, commissions, and even zip ties totaling over $18,000.

In Konicki’s mind, all the work and expense are worth it, and she noted the local businesses that the project supports, including the artists that are commissioned to create the buoys.

“Part of our mission as a chamber of commerce is to showcase the incredible talents of these artists and to financially support them,” she said.

This year, local Connecticut and Rhode Island artists were paid over $17,000 for their work, a $2,000 increase over last year.

And as the chamber’s project supports the community, the community helps to support the chamber’s project, which attracts upwards of 50,000 visitors each year.

Konicki said the chamber’s small staff could not accomplish the work without the efforts, talent and generosity of local residents, volunteers and business owners like Dan Crotty of Crotty and Sons Body Works in Charlestown, Rhode Island, who, for the third year, donated the $12,000 worth of clear coating intended to preserve the buoys against the elements throughout the 2023 season.

This year’s tree will remain on view through Jan. 9. It will be illuminated from 4:30 to 9:30 p.m. through January 8, and 7 p.m. on January 9.