Eight pecan trees and a heavy replacement bill are at the center of a simmering dispute between the City of West University Place and a family who has lived there for decades.
“This problem, I want it to go away,” Otto Michalec said, his voice rising as he punched a ticket issued by the City of West U.
Otto, his sister, and a niece all live in the small bungalow that his father, Jim, purchased 60 years ago at the corner of Rice Boulevard and College. Around 40 years ago, Otto says his father planted 7 pecan trees on their property, and one pecan tree on some adjacent city property…