West Windsor Township, which has had “Tree City USA” designation for 27 years, raised some eyebrows for taking action which seemed remarkably unfriendly to its trees. With no prior announcement, the town began cutting down trees along Akron Lane starting Saturday, September 15. Residents on Aldrich and Oakwood Ways were notified in writing on Wednesday, September 20, that the trees along their streets would be next.
Removal of the 54 trees was approved and acted upon with haste due to potentially dangerous genetic defect in the trees which causes branches to fall from them when they reach a certain age and size. West Windsor is one of few towns in the state which employs a tree expert. Dan Dobrimilsky, who is also a certified landscape architect, recommended that the township act quickly to avoid damage to property or injury to people.
Ironically, one of the township public works employees was injured during the removal of the trees. The DPW employee, whose identity the township would not make known, was reportedly operating a chain saw in front of an Aldrich Way residence. The tree fell in the opposite direction than he apparently anticipated, and he was pinned under its branches. He was taken to the hospital, and later released. One township official said he sustained a separated shoulder.
The notification, hand delivered by Dobrimilsky on September 20, explains the importance of removing the trees. “The Bradford cultivar, or clone, of Callery Pears exhibits a genetic flaw that results in a problematic branching habit, that forms with a sharp upward angle such that when the branches achieve a certain weight they can split. Typically, this occurs with an intense wind, rain, or snowfall,” said the statement.
Pat Ward, West Windsor’s coordinator of community development, says this is a replacement rather than a removal project. She says it may be spring before the trees are replaced. The replacements will be Aristocrat Callery Pear trees, which are a similar species.
Meanwhile, residents of the Windsor Hunt development, expressed anger over the sudden change to the neighborhood landscape. “It looks like a blighted war zone,” said Paulette Zimmerman, an 18-year resident of Aldrich Way. “Our elected officials made a decision to allocate money for this and didn’t notify any of us. We should have been made aware of something this radical. It causes grief to drive down the street.”
Zimmerman says she understands the safety risks involved with the trees, and has no problem with the township’s decision to avoid risk and injury. She takes issue with the fact that residents weren’t notified before the work began, and had no chance to give any input in the decision or hear any deliberation.
Dobrimilsky, says the township has been aware that the Bradford Pear Trees would become a problem for several years. “We were trying to judge at what point we had to remove these trees. We were trying to get as much value out of them until we determined that we would have to remove them due to the risks.”
Dobrimilsky says earlier this year he determined that the trees had gotten big enough that they should be removed before the winter. The township decided it would be cheaper to use public works employees, and he said the action was undertaken quickly due to the DPW’s need to get the project done before beginning the task of fall leaf pickup.
They began removing the 13 trees on Akron Lane on Friday, September 15. Dobrimilsky says the Akron Lane trees were first since they are not in front of any residences, though the trees that had branches removed that day line the sides of at least five houses.
All the removed trees stood on township property, between the sidewalk and the road. Dobrimilsky has chosen Aristocrat Callery Pear trees to replace the Bradfords. He says the new trees will be planted in the spring, since there is a risk associated with planting the trees in the fall.
He estimates there are nearly 50 more Bradford Callery Pear trees along other streets in the township that will also have to be removed when it is determined that they may be a liability risk.
Dobrimilsy says the cost of planting the new trees, and removing the stumps of the old ones will cost approximately $525 per tree. The total cost, according to those figures, will be $28,”350, not including the costs associated with having DPW workers remove the branches. The funds were taken from a shade tree maintenance account kept for just such a reason. This type of account, along with an active shade tree committee, is a requirement for townships to attain the title of “Tree City, USA.”
