If you were picking a tree for in front of your house would you want a lush and leafy one like this? Or the scrawny pruned version like this? Some homeowners on this East Boston street were enraged when they didn't have that choice.
Rhonda Viola, East Boston residentIt's sad, I mean who ever did it obviously didn't care.
A crew of pruners, hired by the City of Boston, arrived with their chainsaws.
Cynthia Guarnera, East Boston residentThey just absolutely in my opinion butchered them.
And soon after residents complained to us. It was like the Coleridge St. chainsaw massacre. The Norway Maples lining the sidewalk looked like this. Their once verdant neighborhood was suddenly sunbaked, hacked, and ugly.
Leo Callahan, East Boston residentI was shocked at the way the trees were cut.
Could this drastic surgery be right?
Hank Phillippi Ryan, 7NewsThese branches are just gone.
This guy is Boston's arborist, in charge of the trees and the pruning. We showed him the before and afters. Before…and after.
Hank Phillippi Ryan, 7NewsThat's okay?
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristThat's exactly how it's supposed to be done.
And officials explain, these maples don't belong to the residents, they belong to the city and Parks and Rec is required to take care of them.
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristIn the long run the tree will be better off for it.
Still we said — before…and after.
Hank Phillippi Ryan, 7NewsYou see why someone would be upset by it.
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristI completely understand, I do. To an untrained eye, that looks bad.
Hank Phillippi Ryan, 7NewsBut?
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristBut that's what is the necessary evil in the world we live in.
These trees can block streetlights, encroach on houses, and threaten power lines, so Parks and Rec tracks the health and location of every municipal tree in town on this database. In the past, they've pruned one tree at a time usually in response to one of the hundreds of emergency calls they get each year. Officials say next winter when there's an ice storm, residents will be happy they exchanged a few tree branches for reliable power and light.
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristWe definitely want to cut down on emergencies, this is one of the things that will help us do that.
And it turns out these East Boston streets are the test in a tree experiment. We found the city plans to mass prune the whole neighborhood — $170,000 tax dollars at work leaving some taxpayers unhappy.
Hank Phillippi Ryan, 7NewsWhat would you tell the person who lives there?
Greg Mossman, City of Boston arboristJust give it some time.
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