Village orders removal of four dying trees
Property owners will have to pick up tab
The owners of the properties — on Chestnut, Livingston and Mulberry streets — will have to pick up the tab.
The village has told the owners of four properties to have dying trees cut down — at their own expense.
The trees, which village officials say are at risk of losing large branches, are at 32 Chestnut St., 46 Livingston St., 36 Mulberry St. and 47 Mulberry St.
“They were brought to our attention by the Highway Department as safety hazards,” said village Tree Commission Chairwoman Meg Crawford.
Crawford said woodpeckers have been “going after these trees ... because they have a lot of insects inside them, which indicates rot inside the tree.”
Members of the Village Board said Dave’s Tree Service has provided an estimate of $3,700 to take down all four trees but that it will be up to property owners to decide who does the work.
Crawford said the lack of rain last summer accelerated the problems with the trees.
“Many of them are sugar maples, and at the end of their life and I think the drought last summer probably had a major affect,” she said.
Joanne Gelb, on whose property one of the trees is located, said she was surprised to learn about the problem.
“I knew there was a woodpecker, but I didn’t know what that means,” she said.
Village officials say the property owners will have 30 days from receiving notification to arrange a date for the trees to be taken down.