Woman sits in tree to protest cutting: Redwood City says oak tree is dying and poses a public threat

Annika Jimenez Gwen Minor of Redwood City began sitting in an oak tree Friday to protest the city cutting it down. The city said the tree was diseased and need to be taken down.

A woman took up residence in an oak tree in Redwood City Friday to protest it being cut down, saving the tree at least for now.

Redwood City teacher Gwen Minor began sitting in a large tree on the corner of Alameda de las Pulgas and Goodwin Avenue in the Woodside Plaza neighborhood 5 a.m. Friday. The city has monitored the tree for some time and it is dying because it is suffering from an advanced Armillaria infection, which has caused failure at the root crown and the root plate, and destruction of the buttress roots along the trunks entire circumference, said city spokesman Malcolm Smith.

Given the concerns about the planned removal expressed by at least one neighbor, the city will not proceed with the work at this time, while it further communicates with the resident and other neighbors to ensure there is a full understanding of the need for removal and replacement of this tree, Smith said.

Our consulting arborist deems the entire tree at overall extreme risk of imminent failure meaning large branches or sections of trunk (or the entire tree) could break apart and fall, Smith wrote in an email. Cars and pedestrians in the area are at risk when this kind of tree failure occurs. The city has spent several years trying to maintain the tree and to find ways to not only keep it, but to keep it viable. However, its abundantly clear from the arborists report that the tree is not structurally sound and is in danger of falling over or breaking apart. Because of its size and proximity to the street and to pedestrians, this tree poses a public safety hazard that we do not believe can reasonably be solved, short of removal.

Minor sees saving the tree as vital, however, and is hoping if the city cant save it, it can at least open a dialogue to replant native oaks to replace ones that are dying.

Its a 200-year-old oak and it needs to stay up, she said while sitting in the tree. Its a treasure of the community and we cant afford to lose it. I am tree sitting today. I love this oak tree. Everybody loves this tree and theyre so important to the community.

She noted its amazing how everyone has a personal connection to the tree. She brought lunch, water and sunglasses for the occasion.

Theres ways to keep it up by girding it up with steel girders or beams or by pruning the long branches back, she said. Or put a structure around it to let it die naturally.

Still, Smith said the city is very proud and protective of the urban forest its been able to maintain throughout the community. Unfortunately, he said, in some cases a tree becomes diseased or damaged to the point where it becomes a safety hazard, and the only prudent and viable option is removal and replacement.

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Woman sits in tree to protest cutting: Redwood City says oak tree is dying and poses a public threat