Out on a limb: Tree-trimming resumes in Charles City

By James Grob, jgrob@charlescitypress.com

Some roads were temporarily blocked off and some residents were asked to move their cars out of the way on Tuesday as Cedar Creek Tree Service took down low-hanging limbs throughout Charles City.

Roughly 2,800 trees in the right of way in the Charles City city limits will be trimmed before Cedar Creek Tree Service is finished. Work includes the trimming of the trees, the use of brush chippers and hauling branches away.

The City Council had a spirited discussion last February concerning the trimming of trees that are in the right of way or easement in front of homes and businesses by the street. City code stated that abutting property owners are responsible for the trimming of trees, but city code also stated that to do trimming in the right-of-way, you must be licensed and bonded.

With more than 2,800 trees needing trimmed, the council decided to do the work as a city project, just for 2019, with the expense paid by Road Use Tax funds. The city received two bids from professional tree trimming services, the low bid coming from Cedar Creek for $150,000, or about $53 for each of the 2,832 trees covered.

City code states that trees need to be trimmed above the street to a height of 15 feet and 8 feet above the sidewalks.

Trees are being trimmed in two phases — the first phase was last spring — in two different fiscal years, as the council allocated $75,000 for each trimming phase.

City Administrator Steve Diers has stated that for future trimming, the city will be inventorying one-fourth of the town each year and then notifying those abutting property owners that they will need to trim the trees as required by city code.

Before this year, many trees in Charles City had not been trimmed for 5-10 years.