ASHFIELD — The Park Commission tabled its decision regarding what to do with two oak trees in declining health at Ashfield Town Beach during last week’s meeting, with members agreeing to research pruning as a possible alternative to removal ahead of next month’s meeting.
The two trees first came into discussion when they were assessed two years ago and an arborist found they were in declining health. At the August meeting of the Park Commission, the group realized it needed to act to protect both beachgoers and the bathhouse’s planned new roof from falling limbs. The Aug. 18 meeting minutes state that arborist Dan Dostal recommended “taking them down sooner than later.”
This discussion led resident Mark Leue to climb up in one of the trees in protest.
Since the beginning of the discussion, five arborists have looked at the trees and given advice to the Park Commission. David Hawkins, consulting arborist at Urban Forestry Solutions Inc., provided a tree assessment for the town using a wood resistance power drill (used for measuring internal decay) with a price of $800, according to an invoice.
In Hawkins’ 13-page assessment, he writes that the larger oak tree will likely fall in three to five years as it “shows what is likely significant decay in (its) interior.”
“This, in combination with a 15-degree lean to the northeast, and a wide heavy crown that will continue to increase in mass and weight annually, is concerning and predisposes the tree to failure at its base,” Hawkins writes.
The smaller tree, he writes, “is less concerning due to its straighter trunk and smaller crown size. However, the dead/dying central leader could be a symptom of root loss/restriction, lack of water or a combination of both.”
Hawkins said removing both trees would eliminate the risk of them falling and injuring people and/or damaging the bathhouse. Thomas Poissant, tree warden and highway superintendent, agreed the safest thing to do is cut down the trees.
“If the tree were to topple when there were users on the beach, imagine how catastrophic that would be,” Poissant said.
Park Commission Chair Judy Haupt said she was warned by many of the arborists that pruning the trees will create large wounds, a huge loss of foliage and cause stress for the trees that may hasten their failure. Nate Russell, a member of the Park Commission, is in favor of pruning the trees, but he is concerned it may not be worth doing if the trees end up looking like a “cell tower.”
Leue, who attended Thursday’s meeting, is in favor of pruning the trees and keeping them alive. He said there is only one limb that goes near the bathhouse and it “goes parallel” to the structure. He said this limb represents about 12% of the tree and is not a significant portion.
Leue went on to argue that if the town is concerned about liability, Ashfield Lake should be drained because the body of water creates a larger liability than the chance of a tree falling on someone.
Resident Helene Leue also spoke in favor of keeping the trees, saying the lifeguards rely on shade to protect themselves from heat exhaustion. Some attendees, including Joe Osterman, proposed keeping the existing trees for a couple more years while other trees grow in their place.
“We never wanted to see the day that we would be here talking about removing this tree,” Poissant said. “The park commissioners have a difficult decision.”
Bella Levavi can be reached at
blevavi@recorder.com or 413-930-4579.