This Thursday, January 16 at 7 p.m. the Urbana Tree Commission is holding a special meeting in the Urbana City Council chambers to consider the fate of an enormous hackberry tree, located at 312 S. Coler. Though the proposed removal is controversial, the City of Urbana has all but decided that the tree must be removed for safety reasons.
According to the Facebook page for the public hearing:
[Urbana’s] biggest tree was almost erased in anonymity. Neighbors discovered the “white dot” just after Christmas and appealed for a temporary reprieve, and the city arborist has called a special meeting of the Tree Commission Thursday January 16 at 7 pm in city council chambers to discuss its fate. We have asked for a second opinion on its retention prospects, and if it must be removed, that it be granted appropriate recognition and appropriate steps taken to offset its loss, such as installing cross sections in area nature centers and calling attention to Urbana’s and the area’s remaining grand trees, Urbana’s new legacy tree program, and the critical role of trees in our community.