<p>An old oak tree that arches over Music street in West Tisbury will be left alone despite its declining condition, selectmen decided this week.
An old oak tree that arches over Music street in West Tisbury will be left alone despite its declining condition, selectmen decided this week. At their meeting Wednsday two selectmen took no action to remove all or part of the tree, opting instead to allow nature to take its course. Selectman Jeffrey (Skipper) Manter 3rd was not present.
The issue came up earlier this month when West Tisbury tree warden Jeremiah Brown and streets superintendent Richard Olsen briefed selectmen about the tree, which is located on the east side of Music street near Middle Road. The tree is declining, Mr. Brown said, and he expects it to fail in the next three to five years. A central branch arches over the road, and has been struck several times by large vehicles, resulting in the loss of a sizable section of bark. Neighbors reported hearing the sound of the collisions from time to time, and the branch now bears bits of metal embedded in its trunk.
While neither Mr. Brown nor Mr. Olsen advocated for a specific course of action, a primary concern was the possibility that the arching limb could fall into the roadway if it were to fail, potentially injuring people and taking out power lines.
But advocates said the danger is not so imminent.
Debate about the tree soon broadened to include discussion about the character and identity of the town and the Island. For some, the tree came to represent the rural, natural, and historic aspects of the town, and the causes for removing it have come to represent unwelcome increases in traffic, commercialization and visitors.
“It’s not just one tree,” said Phyllis Meras, who lives on Music street and has been one of the tree’s most vocal advocates. “It’s the Vineyard: its charm, its beauty, everything is in its animals and birds and trees.” She said this is the second time removal has come up and she has spoken up publicly to defend the tree. The first time was about 10 years ago.
“I don’t want it to be destroyed to make room for the big buses and the big trucks,” Ms. Meras said.
At an earlier meeting selectmen ruled out removing the tree, but said they would consider the removal of the large limb that often gets hit.
On Wednesday this week Nancy Dole, a member of the town historic district commission, attended the selectmen’s meeting and said the commission should have a say in the event of serious alteration of the tree, a video of the meeting shows.
“We’re more interested in preserving the trees than preserving the trucks,” Ms. Dole said. “But we think you can do both without removing half of the tree.”
Selectmen agreed that the town should take a look at its tree management practices, including preservation of old trees and planting of new ones.
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Comments
That's right, and I'm pleased
Woody Bowman Panhandle Road, West TisburyThat's right, and I'm pleased the selectmen are thinking longer and harder about our roadside trees, traffic, and the scenic beauty of our town. Now maybe the carelessly strewn tape can be removed and replaced with some form of more dignified indicator of height for passing trucks.
I applaud the decision to
JM 02539I applaud the decision to keep the tree as-is and let nature take its course. This may seem like a small point / choice, but I think it is an important statement regarding efforts to maintain the integrity of the Island and the elements that contribute to it being special. The influx of trucks / buses / traffic remains one that we will have to deal with directly at some point (unless we want the underlying commercialism to reshape life on the Vineyard), but this is a refreshing outcome.
I agree with Mrs Meras.,
Steve Boyleston Summerdale AlabamaI agree with Mrs Meras., leave it alone., Trees are what makes the Vineyard beautiful. In just about every other part of the country., All Trees are under assault being clear cut off shopping centers., Money Money Money., no care for Nature at all. Trucks should be fined for being terrible drivers. It should be easy to spot them crashed in. Most people live life one way.,, MeMe MeMe nothing else matters., and would Jill everything for personal gain. People who have a Backbone and stand up and speak out are the ones that he’ll save the Voiceless. More should do it.
So if my son is driving down
Mike VhSo if my son is driving down the road and hits the tree....which is way to close to the road. Or if the limb breaks off and kills some young mother of 3.... what then. Oops sorry we should have removed the hazard when we had a chance ..lawsuits? Still won’t bring peace to a grieving family. Remove it and stop listening to tree huggers....time for some common sense guys
Common sense. Yeah.
Michael OBCommon sense.
Yeah.
Middle Road (and thus the
island girl WTMiddle Road (and thus the Panhandle and Music Street) have become the road of choice for contractors in big trucks, big landscaping vehicles (and their trailers) and even Bruno's garbage trucks. We need to preserve the three roads for slow speed uses. Another offender is buses. Although buses are not supposed to use it, the operators routinely send small tour buses (large vans) and even some of the larger buses when they think they can sneak them through). It was agreed years ago to keep large buses (aside from school buses) off these roads and to keep them for bicyclists, pedestrians, kids or even horse back riders -- all of which mandate slow speeds. That did not suit those who now use the road to rush up or down island on their way to work, or wherever they are going. Let them use either North Road or South Road and leave Middle Road and the other two connectors for slow speed, low impact traffic. It is one of the most beautiful roads on the island and one which preserves the rural character,
If you drive SLOWLY by the trees on Music Street, you should have no problems, and it is a pretty stretch os scenery. Enjoy, but at a slow speed!
"So if my son is driving down
Jay Chicago"So if my son is driving down the road and hits the tree....which is way to close to the road." A diligent driver should not hit something which is not in the road.
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