Eight pine trees are bunched together along the Madison Ave. right-of-way, just off of I-55 in Madison. They have died recently and need to be taken down because they pose a public-safety risk.
The death of the trees is attributed to prolonged drought, followed by excessive cold snaps that have been exacerbated by pine beetles feeding on the trees.
Madison Director of Operations Pete Vozzo says the cost to take down those eight trees will be around $1,500 each or $12,000 total.
It’s a problem much bigger than those eight trees and one that is leading to a disaster declaration.
In a town where there may be more than 10,000 trees on public property that need to be taken down, the costs can rise into tens of millions of dollars. That is money that is not allocated for within the city budget.
Disaster declaration
That is why the City of Madison issued a disaster declaration in January, following an ice storm and frigid temperatures and then re-issued the declaration on Feb. 6. Declaring a disaster may help the city qualify for state and federal funds.