Bill steps in to save trees from the chop
Work stops amid row over council street lighting
A fuming former councillor has stepped in to stop a row of 30-year- old trees being chopped down.
Renfrewshire Council workers armed with a chainsaw turned up to fell the beautiful trees in Craigielea Road, Renfrew, earlier this week.
After hearing the machinery kick into action, Bill McGuinness, 78, went to investigate and found he was too late to save one tree.
But he was able to halt work on the others - for now.
Mr McGuinness told the Paisley Daily Express: “I heard the chainshaw going and I went out to see what was going on. They had taken down one of the trees.
“And I don’t just mean they gave it a trim, I mean it was down to the ground, it’s a stump. “I couldn’t believe it.” Mr McGuiness, who was an elected member between 1992 and 2007, says workers told him the trees had to come down as they interfered with street lighting.
He said: “The council, in its wisdom, put up lampposts between the trees, not considering the obvious thing, that trees grow.
“This is a beautiful row of wellestablished trees. To just take them down like this is just not on.
“They should move the lampposts.
“That might sound like an extreme solution but it was their decision to place the posts where they did. I’m not sure why the trees should have to make way.”
When he saw what was going on, he alerted Renfrew North and Braehead SNP Councillor John Shaw, who arrived to inspect what was going on and asked for the work to be stopped.
Mr McGuinness, who has lived in the area for 50 years, insists residents were not informed that work was due to take place.
“There was no consultation before the work was started.
“Had I not gone out, people would be coming home from their work to find the trees away and would have known nothing about it.
“I called Councillor Shaw, who was not happy about the situation. I didn’t know anything about it and he is the local councillor.
“There really needs to be a rethink about this.”
A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: “Following complaints about street lights being obscured, works were undertaken to cut back obstructing trees and included the removal of one tree on Craigilea Road.
“To ensure full visibility and appropriate lighting for residents in the area, it is considered that further works are undertaken as we approach the darker nights during the winter period.
“There will be no further works until discussions on this matter have taken place.”
This is a beautiful row of well-established trees. To just take them down like this is just not on