Lansdale Borough Councilman Jack Hansen says the trees that were cut down recently along West Main Street had to go because some were starting to die, and they were becoming unsafe as dead branches fell to the ground. He says urban street trees have a short lifespan because they live in an unnatural environment.

“We have hardscape all around the trees.  It gives the roots someplace they really have to dig into, so it’s not good for them.  They’re also getting a lot of pollutants from vehicles traveling through.  It’s an unnatural environment for them to be in, so it’s going to shorten their lifespan.”

He says the old flowering pear trees were good in their day, but now the University of Pennsylvania’s Morris Arboretum has given the borough a list of trees that will have longer and healthier lives.

“They’ll give us a longer lifespan, and also they’re going to be a uniform height so that people will be able to walk under them.  They’re not going to grow too high and block everything above them.  It’s a total better environment for downtown Lansdale.”

Hansen says four kinds of trees that local people picked from the list will have twice the lifespan the old ones had.  He says the new trees will be planted in the fall and remain dormant for the winter, and then come to life in the spring.