The Editor:
I reckon we all love trees. I am no arborist, but I do know that tree roots spread and can damage underground water/sewage pipes, crack basement walls and upend sidewalks.
The canopies are beautiful in the right spot. I would be plenty cranky if I bought a riverside condo for the view and the city planted trees blocking my view — anything wrong with shrubs? Besides pruning, they need attention for disease and rot.
Neighbour across the street has several majestic old evergreens, one of which is at least 80 feet (24 metres) tall — I pray every big storm that it still has the strength to just sway and not fall.
Remember the big storm in 2006 that took out 10,000 trees in Stanley Park — not only the dead "old growth" trees, but the younger ones in the path of their fall?
New West should allow residents to cut down old and diseased trees for free, instead of charging several thousand dollars for a permit. One lady couldn't afford it, and the tree fell on her home in a storm.
Prudence and common sense is missing with our council when it comes to trees and anything "green."
- Mary Ruth Olson
