Vandergrift officials continue efforts to manage aging borough trees

Vandergrift officials are hosting a public meeting Friday to educate the public about ongoing efforts to maintain the numerous trees that line borough streets.

Council’s tree and lights committee members will host a free informational meeting at 10 a.m. Sept. 15. in the borough office The committee members are Councilwomen Christine Wilson, Jody Sarno and Marilee Kessler.

About 30 trees in the borough have been identified as needing maintenance or removal, said Kessler, the chairwoman.

Scheduled speakers are Brian Wolyniak with Penn State Extension and Ned Brockmeyer from TreeVitalize.

“These two gentleman are experts in the field, and we are fortunate to have them come and explain the benefits of having a plan to address the situation of trees in the community,” Kessler said.

Vandergrift Council did not approve the creation of a shade tree commission when it was proposed by former Councilwoman Karen McClarnon in 2020.

Wolyniak, an urban and community forestry educator with Penn State Extension, consulted with Vandergrift officials over the past several years, and said the meeting is an opportunity to discuss potentially updating the borough’s tree ordinance.

“Boroughs like Vandergrift typically have denser development than townships, and more likely include business districts with sidewalks and storefronts,” Wolyniak said. “Much of this design came to be from the development of these boroughs before widespread automobile transportation, so denser, walkable neighborhoods were important.”

Wolyniak said there are benefits to towns when they create a shade tree commission.

“This allows for a more robust and active municipal shade tree program that, in turn, will allow for healthier and safer trees in the community forest, while not burdening the municipal council with extra work to make it happen,” Wolyniak said.

Kessler said residents usually report unsafe tree conditions or overgrowth of trees that hinder cars safely parking along borough streets.

“My budget is modest, with part of it earmarked for maintenance, removal and stump grinding (of trees), and there’s another small fund for the planting of trees, which is done when a tree is removed or if a resident requests a tree on borough property in front of their house,” Kessler said.

Kessler said a recent storm felled a Bradford pear tree, splitting it in half on the ground in front of a residence.

“These trees have now been determined to not be good public shade trees as they become unstable,” Kessler said.

Courtesy of Marilee Kessler

A storm recently felled a Bradford pear tree on Custer Avenue in Vandergrift.

The borough planted almost 100 Bradford pear trees several years ago, and the tree committee is working to keep them under control.

“If a tree is questionable, we will have an arborist look at it and determine its condition and make recommendations for that tree. Priority is always given to potentially damaging trees,” Kessler said.

To have a tree removed can cost upward of $1,500, and trimming is several hundred dollars per tree.

After a tree is removed, there is an additional cost of several hundred dollars incurred when the stump is ground and removed. The tree and light committee plants a new tree in the fall to replace the tree that was removed.

The committee recently hired a tree removal company to remove three large trees deemed unsafe.

Trees along portions of Farragut, Columbia and Washington avenues recently were targeted for pruning and trimming.

“Our list is prioritized so that trees with the most problems are dealt with first,” Kessler said.

“Hopefully, sometime in the next couple of years there may be some funding available for small communities like ours, but that may be just wishful thinking,” Kessler said.

“When Vandergrift was first designed in the late 1800s, designer Frederick Olmstead placed great importance on parks and trees and green spaces,” Kessler said. “It was his firm that also designed Central Park (in Manhattan).”

Kessler encourages the public to attend the meeting to learn more about what can be done to help manage Vandergrift’s aging tree population.

“Trees are very important to the atmosphere. They increase the air quality and provide shade and keep utility costs down. And they’re pretty,” he said.

“We have some of the really old ones, and I’m excited to have a plan to replace and replant trees to echo what Olmstead implemented.”

Residents with concerns about borough-owned trees can email Kessler with their concerns at marileekessler@vandergriftborough.com.