Towering courthouse trees removed
<p><strong>This sequence</strong> of photographs shows the top of a tree being cut off on Friday morning at the Flathead County Courthouse in downtown Kalispell. Two 72-foot tall Colorado blue spruce trees were removed just north of the courthouse. (Brenda Ahearn/Daily Inter Lake)</p>
Two towering spruce trees that had framed the north side of the Flathead County Courthouse for a century were removed Thursday and Friday.
Flathead County crews performed the tree removal, which cost $1,200 to $1,450, according to County Maintenance Director Jed Fisher.
He said some 8-foot lengths from the trees will be saved and made into benches at the courthouse “in memory of the trees.”
Fisher earlier described a dire situation, particularly for the tree on the west side of the courthouse lawn. That tree was damaged several years ago when a vehicle collided with it and decay set in.
Core borings found advanced rot in the west-side tree.
“This tree will only continue to decline and we believe it is in your best interest to remove the existing tree and plant a new one as soon as possible,” state forester Rick Moore told the county last year.
Both trees were about 72 feet tall and had been topped through the years, making them top-heavy, Fisher said.
Borings showed both trees to be about 100 years old.
New trees will be planted, although no decision has been made about what kind of replacement trees will be planted.