Government

Tree Warden To Replace Decaying Oaks Downtown with Four Elms

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New Canaan’s tree warden has posted four dying pin oak trees on the first block of Elm Street downtown and plans to replace them with disease-resistant American elms.

The “New Harmony” variety is crossbred with other resistant elms and “it’s the same branch pattern as an American elm, same type of shade tree as an American elm,” Tree Warden Bob Horan told NewCanaanite.com. “They will be a decent size tree, probably somewhere in a 3.5- to 4-inch caliper and what’s nice about these trees it will put elm trees back on Elm. It’s a straight trunk with that vase-shaped arching pattern, easily pruned so we can get some height out of them, so we won’t be hiding the storefronts down the road. So we are taking all of this into consideration.”

Originally known as ‘Railroad Avenue,’ Elm Street has only a few old elm trees left on it, including near the train station. The pin oaks that line much of the central street’s one-way stretch are upwards of 20 years old and are in various stages of decline, with girdling roots and misshapen branch patterns from years of pruning, Horan said.

Government

Town Hires Bob Horan As New Tree Warden

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The Board of Selectmen on Tuesday voted unanimously in favor of hiring a state-licensed arborist who is familiar with New Canaan and this area’s service providers as the town’s new tree warden. Bob Horan starts immediately in the part-time position vacated this summer by well-respected predecessor Bruce Pauley, who served as tree warden for nearly five years. “Bruce has done a great job,” Horan said during an interview at Town Hall after the selectmen’s 3-0 vote to hire him. “He’s been doing it now for quite a few years, after reorganizing the position. I plan on stepping in and continuing his programs and just taking care of the trees and the people of this town.”

First Selectman Rob Mallozzi said during the meeting that Horan has acquired Pauley’s tree care company, though he himself does not do any business with the municipality.