From now through mid-September Wake Forest Power tree trimming crews will be trimming trees and removing several crape myrtles along Stadium Drive in preparation for the Stadium Drive Complete Street Project scheduled to begin in 2018. Wake Forest Power crews will also be relocating power poles and other utilities ahead of the initiative.
The work is scheduled Monday-Friday from 7:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and is not expected to impact traffic.
The removal and trimming of trees is necessary to avoid conflicts with the overhead lines once the power poles are relocated. Trees growing too close to electric lines are the single largest cause of power outages but more importantly endanger the lives of utility workers and the public.
Wake Forest Power will eventually replace the crape myrtles with a species more appropriate for planting under power lines. Trees planted near power lines should be less than 25-feet tall at maturity.
Urban Forestry Coordinator Jennifer Rall and Wake Forest Power officials will work together to determine the most appropriate trees to replant.
“We all have an interest in protecting Wake Forest’s urban forest,” Rall said. “Our goal is to have the right trees in the right place so they contribute to our beautiful urban forest without obstructing power lines. The wrong tree, growing rapidly under electric wires at best is a nuisance requiring constant, expensive trimming and at worst, a hazard leading to power outages and electrical fires.”
Wake Forest Power works to minimize storm impacts year-round through preventive maintenance, including trimming of trees around Wake Forest’s 140 miles of overhead electric distribution lines. Downed trees and limbs are the leading cause of power outages during storms.
Wake Forest Power is proud to be a 2017 Tree Line USA® award recipient from the National Arbor Day Foundation. The Arbor Day Foundation, in cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters, promotes the dual goals of safe, reliable electric service and abundant, healthy trees across utility service areas.
The program seeks to promote best practices in utility arboriculture and public education through five core standards: annual worker training, quality tree care, tree planting and public education, energy conservation and collaboration with community groups. For more information, contact Jennifer Rall at 919-435-9565 or jrall@wakeforestnc.gov.
The Stadium Drive Complete Street Project is part of the bond referendum approved by voters in 2014. For more information, visit wakeforestnc.gov and search “Stadium Drive.”
