Woman Ties Herself to Tree to Save It

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Jane Turner is a tree hugger in the most literal sense of the word.

Turner on Tuesday tied herself to a 100-year-old white pine that she has taken care of for three decades after the Rochester City Council declined to declare it a landmark.

As DTE Energy officials prepared to chop down the tree, Turner made the last stand in what had been a six-month campaign to save it, The Oakland Press reports.

“I have never, nor do I ever want to be a witness or a victim of such a rape of justice,” Turner said after watching the tree come down, a section at a time.

Turner has been fighting to save the 90-inch-wide tree since learning in May that the utility planned to remove it from the Village Green Apartments property on Parkdale Road. The tree technically was not located on her property, but Turner said she has poured thousands of dollars over the years to the care and maintenance of the tree and the area around it.

The tree’s branches had grown into power lines, it had the potential to knock out power for 3,000 area residents and already had been attributed to some outages in the area, DTE Energy spokesman Scott Simons said.

The utility’s arborist, as well as a city-paid arborist, evaluated the tree and both determined that trimming it would leave it in an unhealthy condition.

Three professionals Turner hired scored the tree above what is needed for the landmark designation, but acting city manager Nik Banda, who has a forestry degree from Michigan Technological University, said the tree didn’t quite measure up.

On Monday, the Rochester City Council voted down a measure to designate the tree a landmark, setting the stage for its removal the next day and Turner’s protest. The utility and apartment complex property management company tried to persuade her to leave, but Turner refused to budge.

Rochester police were called to the scene, Turner’s festoon was cut and police remained with her while the tree was removed. She was not arrested.

Turner told The Oakland Press that she knew saving the tree was a long shot.

“I’m fighting against a major utility, a multi-million dollar real estate company and the city,” she said. “What chance was there?”