Crown Street Mall’s troublesome trees appear to have stumped bureaucrats at Wollongong City Council, who called in outside experts to “examine the growing conditions” in the stark shopping strip.
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While it puzzles over how best to replace the pestilent spotted gums – 24 of which blew down last August – the council says it has “mobilised” some stop-gap shrubs in place of the large trees.
The council hopes the planter boxes of flowering magnolias will help to “activate” central Wollongong, a spokeswoman said.
“This is a temporary option and it’s council’s intention to plant permanent replacements later in the year,” she said.
“We have put these planter boxes into the mall to provide some colour and replace the ‘Christmas box’ style wrappings around the tree guards, and is part of our focus on activating the city centre.”
These come at no cost, the spokeswoman said, as “they are council stock that we are able to mobilise for activation programs or when the need arises”.
The shrubs’ stay in the mall is expected to last until some time in autumn, as the concrete environs of the mall in summer were “not the best” for planting and growing new trees, the council spokeswoman said.
Between now and then, the council has established a working group of council staff and industry experts.
“The group is looking at possible replacement species, as well as short and longer term solutions for ongoing tree maintenance in the mall,” the spokeswoman said.
Before their final felling after strong winds last year, the spotted gums created a number of problems following their planting in 2013, as part of the $19.4 million mall makeover.
Just after they were put in the ground, vandals ripped off their branches, prompting the council to erect steel cages to protect them.
Then, in 2014, the trees were hit by an infestation of mealybugs.
In 2016 a weekend of wild weather felled 12 trees, with the council then replacing them at $1000 a pop.
The council said it could not supply its total mall tree spend to the Mercury as this was “a complex question that requires significant research”.
Meantime, at the lower end of the mall, the council is yet to finish its stone and tree playground/public art installation.
Work on the giant sandstone rocks has gone well past its deadline, with the project originally due to be completed in November but now pushed to February.
The art project – which the council says remains on budget – has sparked debate since its installation, with most of the controversy stemming from the towering palm-tree-up-a-pole element that has been placed at the intersection of Church and Crown Streets.
A brief history of Crown Street Mall's gum woes
OCTOBER 28, 2013
Workers plant spotted gum trees and complete other works before the barrier fences come down in the refurbished mall.
OCTOBER 29, 2013
The gum trees spark heated online debate, with the danger posed by falling branches the main cause for concern. Council defends choice, saying they are not a limb-dropping species.
DECEMBER 16, 2013
First temporary, then permanent, steel cages are erected to protect the trees after vandals rip off branches. The council puts the damage bill at nearly $50,000.
MARCH 12, 2014
A group of spotted gum saplings are treated for an infestation of bugs that have turned their leaves a mottled white, as if flaked in sea salt.
JUNE 7, 2016
At least a dozen trees are lopped in half after being decimated by strong winds.
AUGUST 25. 2017
Another 24 gums are chopped down after wild weather, with Wollongong City Council appearing to realise the wrong species may have been chosen for the location. It goes back to “review” which trees are best to plant in their place.