Damaged trees next to new Langley fire station to get first aid

LANGLEY — The trees damaged during construction on a new fire hall in Langley may survive if the city administers life-saving first aid, Langley's planning director told city council members Wednesday night.

Larry Cort, director of community planning, said the city will take steps to rescue the trees today.

An arborist, hired by the contractor on the construction project, checked out the damage Wednesday and said the trees need to be watered immediately. Growth-boosting soils also need to be brought in, and the damaged roots will have to be cut and sealed to avoid rotting.

Further steps may come out of the report that the city expects from the arborist by the end of the week, Cort added.

City staff was happy to hear that the trees have a chance of survival. Langley has been abuzz with residents who are angry that the landmark Douglas firs and Western red cedars along Camano Avenue may not survive the construction phase of the fire hall and park-and-ride project.

"There were a lot of sad faces around city hall about this," Cort said.

Controversy erupted after the trees were damaged recently during construction work. Residents discovered that the roots of four 80- to 100-year-old trees were severed when workers dug a ditch. When city staff went out to assess the damage, they found workers had started to install an irrigation system that hadn't been approved by the city.

The issue was especially painful to residents, because the builders had promised to preserve the trees.

The entities involved in the project were also angry.

"Island Transit and the fire district were as upset, if not more, than we were," Cort said.

The city sent a letter to the contractor last week telling the Mount Vernon architectural firm that it had until July 18 to have an arborist check out the damage, issue an report and make first steps to right the problem.

The contractor, Carletti Architects, did not return repeated requests for comment by The Record.

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