Councillor Bob Stone looking rather concerned as he questions staff about the trees that were removed from River Mill Park.
Councillor Bob Stone looked concerned at Huntsville’s June 27 Council meeting when he asked: “Who cut down the five trees at River Mill Park?”
Huntsville CAO Denise Corry said she wasn’t aware that five trees had been cut down. “It was my understanding that one was removed. There was some question with respect to potential disease that was going to bring harm to those trees, maybe not in the next year or so but certainly over time,” she said. Corry turned the floor over to Executive Director of Community Services and Economic Development Kari Lambe, who explained that a cluster of two trees, towards the back of the park by the Town Docks, had in fact been removed.
We had met on site with a specialist to look at those trees. We are actually observing three other trees in the park that we feel could be a concern as well and as we continue to watch those, if they become an issue they’ll be removed as well. There’s potential for the disease to infect some other trees and there are some concerns about the closeness of other trees in that location.
Executive Director of Community Services and Economic Development Kari Lambe
Stone said he’s most concerned about the two big pine trees and asked why they’d been removed. “They were showing signs of disease,” responded Lambe.
Huntsville Mayor Scott Aitchison said Tim Cantelon of Sandhill Nurseries has offered to donate trees to the Town to replace them.
Attempts to reach Colleen MacDonald, the Town’s Manager of Parks and Cemetery, for comment on the disease affecting the trees were unsuccessful.
The two mature trees that were removed can be seen at foreground right in this photo from the Muskoka 2/4 Craft Beer Festival earlier this year
Opening up the view to who? Anyone in the park can clearly see the river in spite of the trees and there is nobody else. Cutting down trees in such a public place needs council approval and it doesn’t sound like that happened. Where’s the proof they were diseased.
Susan, Your comments are correct from what I have garnered.
Trees need space and a consistent environment. If you take away a whole lot of a tree’s neighboring trees it will be an unhappy tree due to water table stress, sun stress and such things.
Also, if you trample the roots with crowds or set up tents over the root area on a regular basis, as a matter of fact if you make “any” significant changes to the area where the tree’s roots are, you are playing a dangerous game with the poor tree. Trees are sort of Conservative, they don’t like change and if you change their environment too much they die, or at least get sick.
This “embrace change, it’s good for you” theme is only applicable to people who are supplied with their essential necessities for life from places like Metro food stores. In nature, quite often “embracing change” is NOT a good thing.
I heard the Town didn’t want the trees there. All trees have a chance of disease. It is too hot in River Mill Park without the trees. The heat was extreme during the Jim Cuddy concert.
SAD NEWS about the trees.They have a long history. After the Jack Bionda arena was built there was a desire by myself as chair of Parks and Rec and the committee to add some vegetation surrounding the new arena. Those same trees were planted on the crest of the hill surrounding the Jack.
In 2009 when the Summit Centre was being built, Mayor Claude Doughty informed me the trees needed to be cut down for the construction. However, I said we can’t. Claude quickly agreed and brought in a tree spade and the trees were moved to River Mill Park. Mature trees might I say. I always took pride in saving those trees for further enjoyment in River Mill Park.
Opening up the view of River Mill Park to the waterfront has to happen. This is a tourist town surrounded by thousands of beautiful trees. Exposing our town to people spending huge amounts of money stimulating our economy is the price we need to pay to remain competitive. Stop whining get your heads out of the clouds and embrace change!
Sounds like the Golf Course Road situation: cut ’em down then apply to administration with a proposal to replant. Strange stuff.