Hackney gum tree spared from axe – for now – due to Holden Commodore blocking contractors
An abandoned car – and an unsuccessful police search for its owner – have thwarted an unpopular bid to axe an old gum tree.
A large lemon-scented gum, earmarked for removal, will live to fight another day thanks to a parked car.
Police were this morning called to a social housing block at Hackney in an attempt to find the owner of a white Holden Commodore parked under the tree in the Housing Choices SA estate carpark.
The Advertiser reported on October 21 that Housing Choices SA – headed by the state’s planning commissioner Michael Lennon – had threatened to call police if residents tried to block contractors from the site.
A tree crew arrived at the Richmond St estate about 7.30am and police were called soon after. They conducted an unsuccessful doorknock to try to speak to the car’s owner to have the station wagon moved.
The contractors were told by their supervisor to leave the site at 9am. An arborist reported in April that the tree was a safety risk and should be removed.
The Advertiser understands the car has broken down and not been moved from the carpark for six months.
Tree advocates, concerned about the ongoing loss of urban trees in Adelaide, held banners outside the property with the words “How Many More, Premier?” and had placed placards next to the tree.
They are wanting laws strengthened to make it harder to chop down mature trees.
Conservation Council SA has recommended land tax discounts to reward property owners who protect trees or plant more trees.
The Advertiser mapped for the first time where mature trees are being lost across Adelaide and wrote about the efforts and barriers to increasing trees in the city.
