Up to 100 per cent of trees will be removed at Regent and Fraser Street
Anthony Fava and Caroline Jones | London, Ont. | March 21, 2023
As the city plans to take down 75 to 100 per cent of the trees in London’s Old North neighbourhood, residents are voicing their strong disapproval.
To change and update the sewage and water lines, which no longer meet provincial standards, roughly 40 trees will be removed near the intersection of Regent and Fraser Street.
“London is the forest city, and this is an urban forest, so I don’t know why they’re trying to cut down more trees,” says Maggie McDermott, Old North resident.
McDermott has lived in the neighbourhood for 12 years and says the residents are very upset. She says the neighbours don’t believe the tree removal is necessary and want the tree removal to be re-evaluated by city engineers before it goes further.
McDermott says the tree removal will impact the neighbourhood as a lot of young families move into the neighbourhood specifically because of the trees. Some of the trees are over a hundred years old.
The trees to be removed have been marked with white paint, though the removal date has not been confirmed by the city.
“We don’t want to lose these trees, sometimes, unfortunately, they have to come down,” says Shawn Lewis, Deputy Mayor of London. Lewis says that new trees will be planted to replace the ones that are removed.
“When we take trees down, we actually replant at a three to one ratio,” Shawn Lewis says, adding that they put a focus on “planting native species, so that we are being respectful to the environment.”
“It is short term pain for long term gain,” Lewis says.