Wilmington plans to replace declining downtown trees amid safety concerns
WILMINGTON, N.C. (WWAY) — A stretch of one of Wilmington’s main corridors leading into downtown could have a new look this summer as the city moves forward with plans to remove and replace several aging trees along South Third Street.
City arborists say the removals are being driven by public safety concerns after inspections found significant decay in several trees.
For Assistant City Arborist Ben Mizzla, removing trees is not a decision made lightly.
“I love trees,” Mizzla said. “I would always rather prune a tree than remove a tree.”
The city plans to remove several declining laurel oaks along South Third Street between Orange and Dock streets in front of First Presbyterian Church. Many of the trees are around 50 years old.
Two weeks ago, the city removed one tree near the church entrance after identifying it as an immediate public safety concern.
“There comes a point in a tree’s life where the risks outweigh the benefits. We don’t want to remove trees, but what we don’t want more than that is for somebody to be injured or somebody’s property injured,” Mizzla said.
According to Mizzla, church leadership initially requested an inspection after exposed roots became a tripping hazard. During the evaluation, city arborists found evidence of severe internal decay.
Demonstrating the condition of one tree, Mizzla used a probe to show how far deterioration had spread.
“If you measure it across the tree, it is almost the length of the entire tree, so we know that at least the base of this tree is rotted more or less all the way through to the other side,” Mizzla said.
Arborists also found structural concerns higher up in the trees.
“This is the tree trying to heal over, the limb to the right is trying to pull away from the main stem to the left and we know that because this is a laurel oak that is not going to be able to heal over in a way that we think will be structurally sound,” Mizzla said.
The removals come as the city recently released a draft of its Greater Downtown Plan, which included public comments expressing concerns about tree loss.
“There are no trees left… they all got cut down,” one resident comment stated.
Another resident wrote, “Tired of all the trees being cut down.”
Mizzla said city officials understand those concerns but said public safety must remain the top priority.
“Trees are very heavy, they weigh tens of thousands of pounds, so when they come down, a small limb can cause severe damage on the off chance that somebody’s walking underneath or somebody’s driving by it,” Mizzla said.
Of the 12 trees slated for removal, the city says 11 will be replanted between November and February. One tree will not be replaced because it is located too close to an intersection.
