Petition Created To Save 350-Year-Old Roswell Tree

A Roswell resident has created a petition to help save a 350-year-old tree from being destroyed.

A petition on Change.org, titled Save the 64 Goulding Street Old Oak Tree, has garnered 190 supporters, just 10 shy of meeting its goal of 200 signatures.

The property owner at 64 Goulding Place wants to remove a White Oak, believed to be around 350 years old, situated on the property and advocates are hoping to keep that from happening.

“While the tree has some limited disease and recently lost a branch, as you can see in the picture, the tree is very much alive,” wrote petition creator and Roswell resident Donald McDonnell. “While I appreciate the city’s duty to protect public safety, the fact is arborists disagree on the health of this tree and a city like Roswell, with a distinguished record of environmental and arbor conservation, should do more to save this tree.”

McDonnell even appealed to Roswell Mayor Jere Wood, asking the mayor to look into the situation and ensure the tree is protected.

Julie Brechbill, a spokesperson with the city of Roswell, said the property owner applied for — and the city approved — a permit to remove a diseased tree from the site. However, before the permit was issued, Brechbill said the city’s arborist did make a site visit to the property and concluded the tree was diseased and should be removed.

Additionally, the property owner hired Kevin Caldwell, senior consulting arborist with Caldwell Tree Care, to get a second opinion.

“[The company] found that it was very diseased and recommended that the homeowner remove the tree,” Brechbill added.

In his report to the homeowner, dated Nov. 25, 2013, Caldwell writes the tree was “magnificent,” and appeared to be in good shape.

However, Caldwell said he found two different type of root rotting fungi present along the ”asphalt side of the tree.”

“Root rot is fairly common where large trees meet the asphalt pavement in urban areas,” he wrote. “Even though we caught it in the early stages, root rot is not a good sign. It is my opinion the tree roots and compression root plate extending under the street are in the process of declining and dying.”

Caldwell goes on to say that while the signs are early, there is no “cure” for the problem and it’s hard to determine the extent of the root damage without tearing up the road.

“The fact remains this tree needs to come down to avoid the consequences of windthrow with nearly the entire street side infected with fungi,” he writes. “I believe this tree represents a danger of failure. The danger will increase overtime and is irreversible. I would begin to make plans to remove this tree.”

An Atlanta-based advocacy organization disagrees with that assertion, however.

In its press release, Trees Atlanta, which is also advocating for the preservation of the tree, claims Chris Hastings, certified arborist and owner of Arbormedics, ”strongly disagreed with the assessment” that called for the tree’s removal.

“While Trees Atlanta appreciates the city’s responsibility to protect public safety, Trees Atlanta is advising the community in Roswell to protect one of the oldest White Oaks in all of Roswell by suggesting a third (arbitrating) arborist to evaluate the health of the tree,” the organization said.

On the petition site, McDonnell pleads with the city to reconsider the bid to have the tree removed and “not bow to legal maneuvers to cast its removal as an issue of public safety.”

“To cut this tree down because of limited disease, when arborists disagree on its health and prognosis, would be a huge mistake and candidly would open the floodgates to developers and homeowners to wantonly cut down our city’s oldest trees for personal reasons,” he wrote. “I thought Roswell was better than this.”

Regardless of the tree’s fate, McDonnell said via email that he will continue “build this grassroots effort” to develop a more aggressive plan to save the city’s “oldest and most treasured historical legacy in the trees” that not only predate Roswell, but the state of Georgia.

(Photo credit: Donald McDonnell)