CTV News Edmonton has reported:

An Edmonton couple is seeking answers after a line of trees across from Dr. Margaret-Ann Armour School in Ambleside was cut down, leaving woodchips and a stretch of neon orange fencing. Michelle Tomaszewski and Logan Chorney said the trees had sheltered the school playground, supported wildlife and given residents a place to walk and spend time outdoors. The City of Edmonton said most of the trees stood on private land being prepared for development, where current regulations allowed their removal.

“Normally, there’s a wonderful tree line that shelters the playground there from the rest of the neighbourhood, and overnight it was gone. It disappeared,” Chorney said. Tomaszewski said she and Chorney walked there almost every day with their dog, while neighbours also used the area and children played among the trees and built forts.

Tomaszewski said she felt a connection to the animals living there, particularly the magpies. “We would come to the tree line and we’d visit their nest. They would bring their babies to us every spring, and we’d get to meet them as well,” she said.

City communications adviser Karen Burgess told CTV News Edmonton that a few trees were on the city-owned school site. A city assessment in February found those trees to be in poor health, she said. “It was determined they would not have survived and could become a reservoir for tree pests and diseases,” Burgess added.

Tomaszewski and Chorney said they were not satisfied with the explanation and contacted Ward pihêsiwin Coun. Mike Elliott for more information. “We want the environmental assessment to be made public,” Tomaszewski said. Chorney said transparency was their main concern and that it felt as though the community had no say and was “at the mercy of developers.”

Elliott said he was aware of residents’ concerns and understood them. As far as he knew, developers received approval to remove the public trees because they were sick or dying. “I completely understand in this case why people were upset,” he said. “People do like parks, they do like the environment. They do like trees, and this is one of those things that has caused a ripple effect in the community.”

Elliott said he had asked city administration for more information. He would not release reports, however, because they contain “sensitive information.” Tomaszewski and Chorney also started a petition calling for the trees to be replanted, which they said gathered more than 150 signatures.

Elliott said he would personally like to see trees planted again. “I like trees,” he said. “I think it’d be beneficial, but I, once again, have to see what the assessment is and what the plans are for that area.”

For the private property, the city said the developer must meet minimum landscaping requirements when redeveloping the site. In September, city council requested a private property tree protection bylaw for developing neighbourhoods. The report is not expected to go to the Urban Planning Committee until early next year. CTV News Edmonton’s Curtis Goodrum contributed to the report.