Park Avenue oak comes down

Park Avenue may still have more trees than any other street in town, but with the removal of a towering old oak tree, Rehoboth now has a little less shade.

The property owners of 50 Park Ave. received permission June 25 from the Rehoboth Beach Parks and Shade Tree Commission to remove a specimen oak tree from the southwest corner of the property. Tree removal began Sept. 12, and by Sept. 17, the hole for the new structure’s foundation was well on its way to being completed.

The Park Avenue property used to be home to the Corner Cupboard, but several years ago that property was sold, the building torn down, and the lot split in two. A new house has already been built on the second lot.

During the meeting, city Arborist Liz Lingo said the oak tree had a 51-inch caliper, which city code defines as the diameter of the tree measured at one foot above the ground. Just a little higher, the tree split in two, each trunk a specimen oak in its own right. Lingo recommended saving the tree.

On behalf of the property owner, Sussex Tree owner Jeff Meredith attended the meeting. He estimated the tree was at least 150 years old. Meredith, who has 31 years of experience, said the tree’s root system covered the entire lot, and even if an attempt was made to save it, the tree would not survive because the tree’s feeder-root system near the surface would be destroyed during construction.