While the legalities of a three-day tree cutting project that has been unfolding in the city of Corry remains murky, many local residents have found themselves in the middle of the chaos.
Some are trying to carry out the duties of their assigned jobs, and some are exercising their right to stand up for what they believe in.
The collision of these individuals has resulted in a consistent police involvement and hours of delayed work by a company hired to carry out the tree removal, but a glimmer of positivity took place on Wednesday which grew out of community members wanting the best for each other and agreeing to work together.
Corry resident Rebekah Owen, who strongly opposes the tree cutting project — which involved chopping down 46 crab apple trees located on Smith Street and was spearheaded by city officials — felt she had no other choice but to sit in front of one of the doomed trees on the corner of East Smith and Wayne streets on Wednesday morning.
Owen, dressed in a snowsuit and armed with signs that read “1 Tree” and “Many Lives,” took to her post around 8 a.m. As hired crews from L&D Tree Service made their way closer and closer to Owen, they told her they had no choice but to call the police.
“The woman who was with the tree service was really nice to me,” Owen said. “I know they are just trying to do their jobs. But, these trees are special to me and special to my grandmother, who used to live in that brick house right down the street.”
Owen was referring to her grandmother, the late Jean Johnson, the wife of former Corry City Engineer Dave Johnson, who was Owen’s grandfather.
“I feel like she would have been right out there with me,” Owen said. “She planted many trees in many places in Corry and always said, ‘I am planting these trees knowing that I will never sit under their shade.’ That always stuck with me.”
Eventually, members of the City of Corry Police Department responded to Wednesday’s scene in an effort to remove Owen from her post and ultimately allow work to continue.
City of Corry Police Department Lt. Richard Bayhurst and Ptlm. Jacob Kondrlik explained to Owen that they had orders from the city that this work is to continue, and legally, Owen could be arrested for disorderly conduct upon her refusal to cooperate.
Owen explained her position on why she was there and was hopeful that her efforts would, at the very least, save that one tree she had chosen.
Bayhurst and Kondrlik said, unfortunately, this was not a negotiable situation, and again, encouraged Owen to stand up and leave on her own accord.
The conversation continued for about 20 minutes while workers from L&D Tree Service waited.
Eventually, Owen struck a deal with Bayhurst and Kondrlik.
Owen said she would move if the two policemen promised to personally plant trees in honor of the ones that were about to be cut down. The two men agreed.
“It was a little bit of a win,” Owen said. “I thought it was kind that they agreed on their own accord.”
However, Owen said she can’t help but still feel disappointed that the trees are gone.
“Most people involved have been specifically kind,” she said. “But, I do think this whole thing has been a total fail. Nobody wants these trees to come down.”
To the complete surprise of local residents, the first of the 46 trees began falling on Monday afternoon. Word quickly spread throughout the city and on social media about what was happening, and that conversation continued into a City of Corry Council work session that was coincidentally scheduled for Monday night.
And, even though an outpouring of residents publicly stated at Monday’s meeting that they felt blindsided by this sudden removal and begged city officials and City of Corry Tree Committee members to stop, the pleas fell on deaf ears.
Orders to continue the tree removal — which the city had deemed all 46 a nuisance — were made by City of Corry Administrator Joanne Smith and tree committee member Bob Brown.
City solicitor Lydia Caparosa raised important procedural concerns on Monday about whether the tree committee had proper authorization to proceed, noting that if the crab apple tree removal wasn’t part of the approved work plan, then they would have to get approval from Council before they move forward.
She explained that according to the ordinance, “If the activity is a deviation from either the plan or the budget, it says in the ordinance that they have to get approval of Council, and I don’t know in this case if it’s enough deviation from the plan or the budget.”
The solicitor then made what appeared to be a clear recommendation:
“I think the easy thing right now is for Joanne [Smith] to reach out to the tree company to say, ‘Hey, we need to pause this to just evaluate.’”
But ultimately, the decision was made on behalf of the city to continue.
Funding for this project was made possible by a donation to the tree committee. However, no one has yet divulged where the money specifically came from.
Mayor Mike Baker watched Wednesday’s events unfold between Owen and the city police from his black Ford SUV that was parked on property he owns located on the corner of East Smith and Wayne streets.
He was also present inside his vehicle parked on West Smith Street at 8 a.m. Tuesday morning as work to cut down trees continued despite residents pleading for it to stop during Monday’s council meeting. Baker never exited his vehicle.
Mayor-elect Jeff Fike and new members of council, who will be sworn in after the first of the year, are continuing to look into this matter and plan to unravel the details leading up to this sudden execution of trees in an effort to bring the community answers.
In the meantime, residents, including Owen, are trying to stay positive.
“Maybe this will all catapult into something positive,” Owen said. “I am going to keep doing what I can even if it seems small in the scope of the world.”