Bradbury Car Park tree to be replaced

Published on 24 October 2018

A hazardous tree in the centre of Horsham’s Bradbury Car Park will be removed with a replacement tree to be planted in autumn.

Recently, limbs have fallen and damaged vehicles, creating a risk for users of the carpark that must be managed.

Horsham Rural City Council Director Infrastructure John Martin said the large Lemon Scented Gum is regarded as a significant tree and all options to save it have been explored.

“The tree has been assessed twice by a Council arborist and once by an independent arborist who all recommended removal of the tree or exclusion of vehicles and pedestrians,” Mr Martin said.

“Excluding pedestrians and vehicles from the area is not an option as the area required to be fenced would include up to 16 parking bays and at least one traffic lane would also need to be closed.

“Tree cabling, in which limbs in danger of falling are tied back to the trunk, is also not likely to be effective as even the smaller limbs that have fallen from this tree, and which are not suitable for cabling, are up to 100mm in diameter. Taking into account the height they fall from and their weight, they could cause a catastrophic incident.

“Lopping the tree to the degree necessary would damage the structural integrity of the tree and potentially create a greater risk of large parts of the tree falling,” he said.

Mr Martin said a suitable replacement tree would be planted when conditions were suitable in autumn.

“This will be a Rose Gum (Angophora Costata) which is a large, wide and spreading tree that will grow to a height of between 15m and 25m,” he said.

“In time, this will provide excellent shade for car park users.”