A Lafayette neighborhood is fighting with PG&E to keep their street lined with trees.
About 18 of them, some Heritage Oaks, are slated for removal by the utility company.
“They’re everything that I’ve known for my home,” said Lyndsey Brackley of Lafayette. “They have memories.”
She said the trees that line her private driveway bring immense beauty to her Lafayette home. She can’t imagine her place without them.
“Everything, to say that they are my roots is an understatement. This is my childhood home. I’ve grown up driving up this hill and seeing those trees for 40 years,” said Brackley.
But last week she says PG&E’s vegetation management team gave them the mark of death.
“They came with the can of red spray paint, began measuring the diameter of the trees, and then marked them with an ‘X’,” she said.
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Brackley was told 18 trees would be removed within two weeks to protect the overhead transmission lines.
PG&E confirmed the trees are slated for removal.
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“Should a high voltage transmission line be impacted by vegetation, there is the potential for widespread outages, wildfires, and other emergencies,” the utility said in a statement. “We have a granted easement on the property and have determined removal of the trees is needed to ensure safety.”
Brackley insists the trees aren’t a danger.
“We are not trying to put anyone or anything at risk,” she said, adding that there’s plenty of clearance.
Other neighbors say they think PG&E is going too far.
“They seem to overcut, is one of the problems,” said neighbor Steve Takahashi. “I mean they really just whack the heck out of things. So, I don't know, I just hate seeing the trees go.”
Neighbors have written letters to PG&E pleading either then to reconsider. One even painted over the red marks hoping it might spare them.
Brackley said she’s not giving up.
“Save the trees, save all the trees.” she said.
