Removal of three street trees recommended

Spokane’s city arborist is recommending the removal of three aging and damaged street trees that were among rows of South Side trees pruned earlier this year under an Avista utilities program to clear vegetation away from power lines.

The trees are located at 3507 S. Grand Blvd., 3419 S. Grand Blvd. and 606 E. 34th Ave. All three of the trees have defects that could cause large branches to break and fall and possibly injure someone, said Jeff Perry, city arborist.

In addition, Perry is recommending that 11 other heavily pruned trees be kept and monitored in coming years to make sure they don’t become safety hazards.

Perry made his recommendations during a briefing session last Thursday with the Spokane City Council. The council also heard from Avista Utilities representatives who explained their efforts to keep lines free of hazards. State law requires 10 feet of clearance around electrical lines.

A briefing on the tree program was planned for earlier this week with the Comstock Neighborhood Council, and another briefing was tentatively scheduled for a regular 6 p.m. meeting of the City Council on June 25, which would be televised on cable Channel 5.

The pruning drew neighborhood criticism because tree crews cut large open areas where lines ran through tree canopies.

The idea was to get the tree limbs to grow away from power lines, Avista officials have said, rather than removing them or topping them. The utility is now on a five-year cycle for pruning.

“This issue is not going away. We have an urban forest that is aging, growing,” said Steve Trabun, business development manager for Avista.

Perry said property owners where the three condemned trees are located will be given 30-day notices to appeal the removals to the city’s tree committee.