Massachusetts is one of the most tree-covered states in America. That's why Larry Riley was disappointed when the trees in his Worcester neighborhood started disappearing.
"We had two trees here and they cut those down maybe 20 years ago and the last 5 years they probably cut down six trees in this neighborhood," said Riley.
Last summer, when city crews began planting brand new trees Riley was very excited, until he saw his tree.
"It was dead when they planted it." said Riley.
He called the city to complain and officials sent a crew out to investigate.
"I just happened to be home when they came over and I talked to them and say 'What are you looking at? It's a dead tree,' and they were saying 'Well oh, we have to go back and report it.'" Riley explained. "I told them 'You planted the tree dead. You don't have to be an arborist to know that tree was dead.'"
The city sent Riley a letter saying it would monitor his tree and come back in six months. When that didn't happen, he decided he just wanted the eyesore removed.
"I called them again and then they kind of just said 'We're working on it,' and then the winter came and now the spring came again and I still have my dead tree." Riley says.
Riley was stumped. The city wouldn't replace or remove his dead tree. So with nowhere else to turn he went out on a limb and called Solve It 7.
We logged quite a few calls with the city and eventually got the attention of Worcester city manager Edward Augustus, who made sure a new tree would be planted soon.
A few weeks later, Augustus not only stopped by to deliver Riley's new tree, but also rolled up his sleeves to help plant it.
"Trees help make neighborhoods, and Worcester really cares a lot about our trees," said Augustus.
According to Augustus, the city is still recovering from the loss of more than 30,000 trees that were destroyed by the Asian long-horned beetle infestation.
"Solve It 7 did everything that they could and that's why I got my tree. They solve a lot of problems, they make a lot of people happy so I believe in Solve It 7," Riley says.
Having trouble getting to the root of your problem? Maybe you should branch out in a different direction. Give Solve It 7 a call at 617-367-7777 or send us an email to SolveIt7@whdh.com.
(Copyright (c) 2015 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)