Road construction alters streetscape

While it may seem contrary to beautification, the removal of some of the city's original greenery is often a necessary component of street maintenance, city officials say.

As part of Phase IV street reconstruction, which includes roadwork on Avery Lane, Clover Valley Drive, and Strickland Avenue, construction crews are currently replacing water lines, wastewater and sewer lines, and sidewalks where they need repairs, said Brant Shallenburger, construction communication facilitator for the city. Eventually, crews will be pulling out and reconstructing the entire streets.

Just as during the North Colony Boulevard widening project, the Phase IV construction provides homeowners the choice of having adjacent trees removed at no cost, Shallenburger said.

On the plus side, taking advantage of the opportunity could save homeowners from dealing with future maintenance issues, he said. Trees that aren't removed will have root-barriers put down, potentially hindering the tree's future access to water sources, resulting in damage or death.

"If we don't remove them now then it becomes the responsibility of the homeowner to deal with it later," Shallenburger said. "We know it changes the look of the street but in order to make sure the roads are drivable it's something that has to be done as part of the natural course of construction."

City representatives have gone door-to-door along the streets being reconstructed seeking permission from the homeowners and/or landlords to remove the trees.

"If they don't give us specific permission then we are not removing those trees," Shallenburger said.

If a tree falls within the city's right-of-way, it may be removed without the homeowner's permission, Shallenburger said. "We have the right to remove them if we want but we don't want to do that. The only reason we would take one out without the permission of the homeowner is if it would directly affect the work," he said.

While some trees on the Phase IV streets have been claimed to be as much as 100 years old, Shallenburger said he believes they were all planted by Fox & Jacobs, the city's developers in the early 1970s.

Not everyone in town, however, feels the tree removal is a cut-and-dried issue. Resident Joan Lux spoke to the council earlier this month lamenting the loss of Strickland's tree-laden streetscape.

"When you decided about the trees on Strickland, I don't think anybody thought about what was going to happen," she said.

Lux also said some residents in her neighborhood said they weren't happy about the way they were approached. "I was approached nicely, so I have no complaint there. But they felt they were pressured by saying, ‘If you don't take the tree down now (when the city pays for it) … and the tree dies afterward, it's yours,' and a lot panicked," she said.

Lux said 35 trees that have been there 38-plus years cascade over the street, creating a beautiful canopy. "People walked down that street and they're amazed," she said, adding that people have been driving by in cars recently to take pictures before many of the trees are removed.

"It's a part of history and it's gone," she said. "We each made our decisions. I did not take my trees down. I would not ever do that. It's a beautiful street."

Avery, Clover Valley, and Strickland are the fourth set of three residential streets being constructed as part of the Phase IV residential street reconstruction project, according to the city's website. The streets will be constructed to the existing width with reinforced paving. Sidewalk and driveway returns within the street's right-of-ways also will be reconstructed.

Other improvements include drainage work and new water and sanitary sewer lines within the right-of-way. Total cost of the project is $2.3 million, and is being funded by the city with savings from previous projects. Construction began in February and is scheduled for completion in April 2013.

For information, call Shallenburger at 972-624-3108.

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