EAST BRADFORD — With many towering older trees along milelong Brandywine Road the canopy is more than a 100 feet above the ground, and even on a sunny day almost completely shades the one-way roadway.
About 100 trees on Brandywine and Harmony Hill roads in East Bradford Township are threatened to be cut down by PECO, and residents and the township are up in arms with the prospect.
Other roads that tree removal is projected by PECO are Copeland School, Guthrie and Shenton.
PECO plans to remove some remaining downed trees from along Line Road in East Goshen but not all. (BILL RETTEW – MEDIANEWS GROUP)
“We do not take the decision to remove trees from the community lightly,” reads an email sent to the Daily Local News by PECO’s Madison Davis, communications. “We understand the importance and benefits of trees and would not have moved forward on this path were it not essential to the future of our region’s electric grid and reliability in East Bradford.”
East Bradford Manager Mandie Cantlin hopes to save many of the trees that are now marked for removal by outright preserving them from the chain saw or by pruning branches rather cutting down whole trees.
She has been by seeking a more detailed plan and negotiating to ensure that PECO is not excessive or arbitrary in its removal on Brandywine Road and other township roads.
East Bradford Supervisor John Snook happily points to a centuries-old sycamore that will be saved from the chain saw and only trimmed by PECO. (BILL RETTEW – MEDIANEWS GROUP)
The township has declared Brandywine a scenic road via the township zoning code.
According to John Snook, township supervisors chairman, the roadway’s trees are thus protected and there are prohibitions from vegetation removal.
“We would prefer to see more effort toward trimming in lieu of wholesale removal,” Snook said.
PECO was asked whether the scenic roadway designation matters.
East Bradford Supervisor John Snook revels in the trees on Brandywine Road. (BILL RETTEW – MEDIANEWS GROUP)
“Yes,” wrote Davis. “The Scenic Road designation was taken into consideration when assessing the area, however trees that were identified as posing reliability risk will be trimmed or removed.”
Sue Ciccone is a neighbor and regular walker of Brandywine Road.
“I personally counted 74 trees alone on just Brandywine Road that are tagged for removal,” Ciccone said. “It will take 100 years to even come close to what we have now.
An old sycamore with a circumference of 180 inches fights for space with a PECO electrical pole. (BILL RETTEW – MEDIANEWS GROUP)
“This will not only be devastating to our community, but also the wildlife that lives in these tree tops. I am begging PECO to reduce the number of trees being taken down and consider the future of this gorgeous area and the wildlife that lives within it.
“To me it’s a cathedral and it will be ruined.”
Phyllis Skupien is a Brandywine Road resident.
“The change in the natural feel of our road will impact our property values as well as residents who enjoy walking along the road for its natural beauty,” she said.
PECO has notified in writing all residents who own impacted trees, more than once.
Colleen Rogenmuser has several mature trees and saplings that are marked for removal.
She said that she typically receives an annual notice from PECO about basic trimming and this year’s notice was ambiguous, and did not communicate the severity of the removal that would expose a well-guarded playground on her property.
PECO has asked property owners that disagree with the removal of trees to contact the power company, and if they don’t it is assumed that the removal is okay with the homeowner.
Rogenmuser has filed a formal complaint with PECO, and was told that until the trees are further looked at and examined that none would be removed.
The canopy on Brandywine Road in East Bradford Township is very high. (BILL RETTEW – MEDIANEWS GROUP)
Officialdom’s involvement
Snook said that the board of supervisors has yet to address the subject publicly at a meeting. He favored a more confrontational approach but is leaving it up to Cantlin to negotiate with PECO on behalf of the township.
Cantlin said that the township solicitor was consulted, and although Brandywine is designated a scenic road, “PECO has rights on what they can do in their right of way” and that is what irks homeowners like Rogenmuser.
“From a resident’s standpoint, that’s frustrating,” Cantlin said. “Rather than attempt an enforcement path with PECO, we are trying to work the best we can to get the best possible result.”
State Rep. Chris Pielli’s Constituent Services Adviser Matt DeWese sent a letter to an East Bradford resident.
“Brandywine Road presents a unique challenge because it is so narrow, and the canopy is particularly heavy,” wrote DeWese. “I don’t see a way to accomplish PECO’s objective without significantly impacting the road canopy.”
In East Goshen
PECO work also took down dozens of trees in East Goshen on Line Road.
Many of the downed trees from previous PECO jobs has remained in place in some sections in various townships. Davis said that most of the cut trees in East Goshen will be removed, but not all.
The following is the from the PECO email to the Daily Local:
“Residents that had a tree removed on their property worked directly with PECO qualified contractor Davey Resource Group and signed an Acknowledgement Form. As part of this process, the residents that had tree work completed on their property agreed either to keep the wood in 18” – 24” or 8″ – 10″ pieces or to have the wood picked up.
“For trees that are not on residential properties, the wood will either be cut up and left or will be removed if there are any safety concerns.
“In the cases where the wood is being picked up, this will occur in the coming weeks.”
More tree removal is planned for East Goshen, according to township Supervisor Michele Truitt.
“On Sept. 10, I was notified by a PECO rep that East Goshen will see another tree removal project along Dutton Mill Road and Manley Road starting in October,” Truitt said. “It breaks my heart that our township is subject to yet another decimation of hundreds of trees.
“PECO needs to be reminded that while tree removal may be necessary for delivery of service, there is a true environmental impact by such widespread projects that change the makeup of the land forever and should work to conserve as many mature trees as possible.”
Davis noted how PECO decides which trees to remove and which to trim.
“PECO works with specially trained and qualified arborists, following the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) A300 standard, to ensure responsible pruning and promote the health of existing vegetation,” she wrote. “Each tree is assessed based on its potential impact on reliability.
“If more than 30 percent of the tree needs to be trimmed to reduce the reliability risk, the tree is scheduled for removal. This is a best management practice as the long-term viability of the tree will be impacted.”
The color code
Trees marked orange are slated for removal and yellow markings denote trimming.
Some trees were initially marked orange and then were marked yellow on Brandywine Road, according to residents.
“Each tree is initially assessed based on its potential impact to electrical equipment and marked for either removal or trimming. The ‘removal’ or ‘trimming’ status can change for a number of reasons, including final project design, long-term viability of the tree, and discussions with the customers,” wrote Davis. “Once a final determination is made, the tree will be marked with blue as an indication that the tree is ready for work.”
“The areas where work is occurring in East Goshen and East Bradford have been identified as having multiple outages caused by vegetation.
“This infrastructure investment will help our system withstand more frequent and damaging storms and improve reliability by reducing the frequency of outages that cannot be prevented.
“Since 2023, some customers in the project area have experienced an average of more than five vegetation related outages a year lasting on average 149 minutes.
“In addition to the tree work, the equipment in this area will be upgraded to help our system withstand more frequent and damaging storms and improve reliability by reducing the frequency of outages that cannot be prevented.”
Some new poles will be installed to support the new equipment.
“In addition, PECO’s service territory, and Pennsylvania broadly, fall under the ‘Heavy Loading Zone’ as that is defined by the National Electrical Safety Code (NESC). The NESC recommends standards for those in the “Heavy Loading Zone” to meet expected weather conditions for this area, including hurricane-force winds and ice buildup during snowstorms. The taller poles are part of the NESC recommended standards,” reads the release.
PECO: “Historically, in regions where PECO performed vegetation clearance work, there was a 30 percent reduction in vegetation-related outages and a significant improvement in electric reliability. Most outages occur during extreme weather, such as the thunderstorms that caused power outages for more than 100,000 customers in Chester County in July of 2024. Notably, 86 percent of these outages were caused by vegetation.”
Originally Published: September 15, 2025 at 7:07 AM EDT