Resident upset two large maples felled at Gage Park

Aug. 29, 2014
thespec.com

The city has been cutting down trees in Gage Park. Some of them like these in the photograph are ash trees dead due to the emerald ash borer.

More recently, two large maples were cut down at the park's Montclair entrance, upsetting neighbour Ward Cluff, who said they appeared strong and healthy. And the loss has left a gaping hole in the canopy of trees in that end of the park, Cluff said.

But city staff say the maples had dead limbs that were in danger of falling on people and so the trees had to come down.

The invasive beetle is expected to kill most ash in Hamilton over the next decade. The city approved a management plan in 2012 to proactively remove 10 per cent of the estimated 23,000 ash on city boulevards and in parks every year.