CANTON — A contractor hired by the state Department of Transportation cut down trees on East Main Street on Thursday that were identified during a survey for road reconstruction as diseased or dangerous.
"This is the biggest hit, the biggest change visually. This is essentially the bulk of the largest trees," DOT design leader Stephen G. Gagnon said. "There will be a few other impacts."
The 11 trees were tapped by an independent arborist studying what plantings could survive DOT's project scheduled for 2010 that will rip up much of Route 11 through the village.
"We certainly had a lot of attention paid to the trees," Mr. Gagnon said. "Through that process, they evaluated every tree out there. These basically pose a risk."
St. Lawrence University hired its own arborist to check out three trees in the yard of MacAllaster House, the home of the president, who confirmed the recommendation of DOT. The university took down the trees itself.
SLU and DOT worked together to site one replacement tree, which has been planted with a root shield to protect it from the future road work.
Other East Main Street neighbors were told of DOT's findings and had the opportunity to hire their own arborist as well.
"It's a little hard to argue with safety," said William A. Watson, spokesman for Save Historic Canton, a citizens group. "We'd like to save trees, but dead is dead."
The look of the street, particularly at MacAllaster House, is a little bare but not that noticeable because the dead and sick trees in question didn't have a lot of foliage, Mr. Watson said.
The 11 trees slated for removal ranked at the highest level on a DOT scale for bad health and on where they might fall, Mr. Gagnon said.
The tree work by contractor Richard Sears, Glens Falls, slowed traffic to a crawl.
"This is just an example of what we're in for," Village Superintendent Brien E. Hallahan said.
Although traffic is expected to be difficult during the road work, drivers will become accustomed to the construction and seek out alternative routes once the actual project begins and detours are established, Mr. Gagnon said.
The tree-cutting, which was expected to end today, won't be the last. Residential trees planted between the sidewalk and the curb eventually will come down, as will all of the downtown's sidewalk trees. DOT will have a replacement program after the construction is done.
DOT is planning a public hearing in two to three months to present its preferred alternatives for the overall project, but the broad scope of the plans already has been laid out in previous presentations.
"There shouldn't be too many mysteries," Mr. Gagnon said.
