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She has no hugs for this historic tree

The huge, centuries-old tree is damaging her house and a sewer line. But getting the city and power company to make fixes has been hard.

By BETH N. GRAY
Published September 23, 2006

BROOKSVILLE - Christina Langlais calls herself a tree hugger, a nature worshipper and an animal lover.

But one tree has gotten her goat.

A historic oak tree, more than 15 feet in diameter, on the city right of way of her property on E Early Street - is wreaking havoc with her sewage lines, foundation and roof.

The oak, at least 200 and maybe up to 400 years old, spreads it branches wide and high, weeps with Spanish moss, provides shade, produces oxygen and shelters wildlife, said Langlais, who is disabled and a single mother of a teenage girl.

Of the tree, she says: "Sometimes you have to reach a compromise."

Since she bought the home three years ago in a section of the city built in the 1920s, she said she has spent some $5,500 on replacing a sewer lateral, on new plumbing and also on a new roof.

While she's not sure if tree branches were responsible for the roof deterioration, there's no doubt the tree's roots penetrated her municipal sewer lines.

And baby-stepping down her house's inside hallway, one can feel the heaving and settling of the brick foundation, features likely perpetrated by the extensive root system of the oak.

Langlais said she complained to the city "since day one" about the roots in the sewer line. City Manager Richard Anderson said this week the line was old clay pipe that simply crumbled and allowed the tree roots in.

Langlais still wants the city to pay. It's the city's tree, the manager acknowledged, but he pointed out that a sewage lateral is still the responsibility of the property owner.

Langlais added, "They want me to put in a new curb," pointing to an out-of-alignment segment obviously heaved by a root of the mammoth tree.

If she was told that by a municipal employee, the information was incorrect, said Anderson. The curb is the city's responsibility and will be repaired if it threatens traffic or pedestrian safety, he said. There are no sidewalks on Early Street.

Next on her list of irks with the tree are two power lines leading to her house that have rubbed grooves in a thigh-thick limb from buffeting by wind and rain. They sparked for 12 hours during Hurricane Charley in 2004, she recalled. The city told her to call the power company, Progress Energy. The company refused to act on her word because the tree was owned by the city, a spokesman told her.

But Progress Energy now has a work order to come and trim the tree, at least the branches rubbing the power lines, maybe more, Anderson said.

It apparently took a visit by Langlais' mother, Chris Payne of Zephyrhills, to Anderson on Sept. 12 to get action after three years.

But as long as the tree is healthy, it probably won't be taken down, Anderson said.

"The day will come when that tree will be replaced," he said. "We will continue to watch it."

Said Langlais, "It's beautiful - but it's a pain."

Beth Gray can be reached at graybethn@earthlink.net.

[Last modified September 23, 2006, 06:52:07]