NORWAY – A number of trees on Main Street require some work, while some others need to be removed completely, Town Manager David Holt told a group of business owners and residents last week.
“Lots of them are too big,” he said, while “many of those planted in the ’80s and ’90s have died.”
Oak, maple and ash trees were initially planted as an effort to revitalize Main Street in the 1980s. Unfortunately, they were planted without town employees having enough information to know how to keep them alive in a downtown setting, he said.
A group of business owners and other concerned residents met Friday afternoon at the Town Office to discuss the tree situation and to listen to recommendations from arborist Tish Carr. Holt called in Carr because of her expertise. “We need a big picture this time. The folks who planted those trees were well-intentioned, but ” he shrugged.
Carr has a long history of working for the state, as well as for individual towns, and her own roots are here in Norway. Her knowledge of the trees on Main Street goes back to the late 1980s when her parents had a camp on Norway Lake.
Carr, who brought Merle Ring from the Department of Conservation, recommended that the town create a tree committee that would be responsible for creating a vision and a strategy for “greening” downtown, setting policy, creating guidelines and overseeing maintenance and care of the trees.
Her advice is to plant mostly larger trees that require a 6-by-6-foot cut in the sidewalk. She said smaller trees will eventually block storefront signs, while the larger ones create a canopy effect, spreading out above the signs.
“You have to balance greenery with owners’ needs and with (American Disabilities Act) guidelines for sidewalk traffic,” she said.
“I’m committed to the beautification of downtown Norway, and I’m very interested in helping with this project,” said Roy Gedat, president of the Norway Downtown Revitalization Board of Directors. John Belanger, a business owner on Main Street, jokingly responded, “Count me in on the other side.”
Anyone interested in learning more about or helping with the tree project can contact Gedat at 890-0773 or Holt at 743- 6651.
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