Thomas MacMillan Photo
Yale has scaled back its plans to cut down 18 Norway maple trees on Prospect Street, and received the city’s tree warden’s blessing to remove only seven.
The blessing came in the form of an official letter Monday from New Haven’s parks department. The letter announces the results of a public hearing held last week on the proposed removal of trees from Prospect Street between Grove and Trumbull streets.
Yale had initially proposed to cut down up to 18 Norway maples there and replace them with oaks. It was part of a plan modify the streetscape there, next to the Grove Street cemetery.
The city held a hearing on the proposal last Wednesday night, at which point Yale presented a modified proposal to remove only seven maples and replace them with nine oaks. The city accepted the proposal following the hearing.
The New Haven Urban Design League supported both the original plan and the new proposal.
Yale will remove seven trees representing a total of 142 inches of diameter width, measured at breast height (DBH). The replacement trees will be only 3 inches wide at breast height. Yale will make up the difference in total DBH by paying for trees to be planted at other locations, according to an official notice of the decision. Read it here. Click here to see which trees will be removed.
“The seven trees of the 18 to be taken down are those that are in decline or would not be expected to survive the beautification work,” said Yale spokesman Tom Conroy. “Most people Yale heard from wanted information on the project and the rationale. Yale consulted with a landscape architect to come up with the final plan and the number of trees that was submitted. The streetscape will be more attractive than it was.”
Let me see if I got this right: Yale was willing to remove a bunch of invasive trees, the best of which was middle aged, and not an attractive specimen, and replace them with good oaks. Thanks to Sir Complains O'Lot and Dame Doom On You, we will only get a half measure.