Mount Prospect: 75 percent of storm's brush picked up
On the north end of Melas Park, stands what Mount Prospect public works staff has dubbed Mount Brushmore.
There are no faces of ex-presidents here, just the heads of logs poking beneath the shaggy brows of evergreen trees.
This is where trucks have been dumping the remains of dead and damaged trees from the Aug. 23 storm.
This morning, a huge grapple grabs a clump of trees, dropping it into the revolving drum of a tub grinder provided by Kramer Tree Specialists. Near the bottom out pours a parabola of shavings that can be used for mulch.
This machine is capable of processing roughly 200 cubic yards of woody material per hour.
Mount Prospect Mayor Irvana Wilks, Public Works Director Glen Andler and Sandy Clark, the forestry-grounds superintendent, gathered here this morning to update the village's cleanup efforts.
The village is in the process of a comprehensive brush pickup, which includes both private and public trees.
As of Tuesday, 75 percent of the village's streets have been picked up. Clark is hoping it will be finished by Friday, although she said people are still lugging in more material from their backyards.
"Every time we think we're close to finishing a section, more piles come out," she said.
The storm itself caused more tree damage in Mount Prospect in more than 30 years. As of 9 a.m. Wednesday, Clark said, 258 trees are scheduled for complete removal, while an estimated 50 to 70 more are expected.
She said 2,550 trees, or roughly 10 percent of the village's public trees, are known to be damaged, with new reports daily.
Broken limbs have already been removed from more than 1,000 trees, 1,044 yards of wood chips and 228 yards of logs have been hauled out of town and 3,800 yards of brush and logs are waiting to be ground.
Clark said it could cost the village more than $120,000 to replant trees.
"We call ourselves Tree City U.S.A. and we have the wonderful Arbor Day ceremony every year," Wilks said. "It breaks our heart to see what has happened to our trees. I know it is heartbreaking for the residents, too."
It looks like Mount Prospect will have Mount Brushmore around for a while. Andler is estimating it will take as much as three weeks to grind all the trees up.
To follow the village's progress with brush pickup, visit www.mountprospect.org.
Barricades with signage are also being placed in the completed sections. Once a section is posted as complete, no more logs or brush should be placed on parkways and residents there will need to properly prepare their logs and brush according to the regular guidelines listed on the village Web site.
No brush or logs should be placed in streets.