The county government’s arborist is pushing back on accusations that an iconic tree was removed needlessly from a Lyon Park median.
But local residents aghast at the removal aren’t letting the county government off the hook for its actions.
“What kind of government refuses to work together with its own citizens to come up with solutions that work for everyone?” asked Susan Land, a member of the Arlington Tree Action Group, at the Dec. 18 meeting of the Forestry and Natural Resources Commission.
She was referencing a tree that was taken down Dec. 11-12 by a contractor for the county government from a median island in the 300 block of N. Fillmore Street.
The removal came despite efforts by the Lyon Park Citizens Association to find a way to preserve the tree, which had stood in the median since the 1980s.
“The county expressed no interest in working with the residents on any alternatives,” Land said at the commission meeting.
Her comments were along the same lines as those of Natalie Roy, president of the civic association, representing the 5,000 residents of Lyon Park.
Roy used the Dec. 13 County Board meeting to lambaste leaders and staff for their unwillingness to find common ground with the community.
At that meeting, County Board members promised a written follow-up from staff. As of Dec. 19, Roy said one had not been received.
Verweij said that despite displaying few signs of disease, the tree was afflicted with issues that made removal the right course of action.
“This is a regularly traveled road,” Verweij told commission members in a follow-up at the meeting. “Anybody at any time could be underneath this tree. Anybody who is driving, walking or otherwise near that tree could be at risk.”
Leaders of the civic association had proposed hiring an arborist to take an independent look at the tree, but the suggestion was rebuffed by staff.
“We do not take second opinions. The county is the entity taking on all the liability,” Verweij said.
While defending the government’s actions, the arborist acknowledged “people are very frustrated” by what transpired.
So, too, were a number of commission members. While accepting Verweij’s contention that the tree needed to come down, they voiced concern that the matter may not have been handled with the sensitivity called for.
At the same time, commission chair Caroline Haynes said it was perhaps impossible to let everyone know the reasons behind a decision to take down a tree, even using all the outreach tools available.
“There’s always people that come out of the woodwork saying ‘I didn’t know about this,'” she said.
