Why were dozens of trees cut down on College Street across from Mountain View Elementary?
A number of trees were cut down on College Street, across from Mountain View Elementary, late last year, generating chatter across social media and producing one key question: Why?
Pedestrians and drivers currently can see tree stumps near 19th Avenue Southeast that have been tagged with orange paint.
City of Lacey spokesman Ty Keltner said 55 trees — Norwegian Sunset Maples — were removed. They were originally planted when the city widened College Street and built the roundabout at 22nd Avenue in 2019.
The trees were chosen for the College Street corridor as part of the city’s urban forestry plan, but then the city discovered a problem, Keltner said.
“As it turns out, the type of tree that was specified in the urban forestry plan for the College Street corridor has over time shown to be problematic when it comes to damaging sidewalks,” he said. “Therefore the trees were removed before they could damage the sidewalks.”
The trees will be replaced with the Emerald Avenue Hornbeam, which is considered more “infrastructure friendly,” he said.
“This work will be contracted out and is estimated to begin in late February or early March, depending on weather,” Keltner said. “The work will include removal of tree stumps and roots, irrigation system repair, planting site preparation and other work as needed to prepare the sites for future tree planting.”
That work will be done by winning bidder Monarch Landscaping at a cost of $66,547. The cost of the new trees is $15,172, Keltner said.
Once Monarch Landscaping is done with their end of the project, city staff will come in to plant the new trees, he said.
