Majestic Cary oak won't be removed for aquatic center
An oak tree in Cary that some residents were concerned would be cut down to make way for construction on the village's new aquatic facility will stay up, according to the Cary Park District.
Kimberly Kobos, who lives across from the tree on Adare Drive, said she was told earlier this month by someone involved with the aquatic facility that the 200-year-old oak would be cut down as part of the project.
"You're never going to be able to replace that," she said, adding that it is a "beautiful" tree. "Trees speak, and trees feel. You can call me a tree hugger, but they do."
The park district had been in the process of identifying where to put a connection point for the sanitary line to serve the property. One option was along Adare Drive, at a location just below the tree.
Kobos has lived in Cary since 1992 and said the tree means a lot to her. It is the first thing she sees when waking up in the morning and the last thing she sees at night.
After Daily Herald columnist Burt Constable wrote about the tree, Kobos' neighbors in the subdivision where she and her husband, Salvador Islas, live have been extremely supportive and posted the column on a neighborhood Facebook group, she said.
"People have been coming down to see the tree, to talk to us," Kobos said.
Dan Jones, executive director of the Cary Park District, said Friday that the tree will not be taken down.
Jones said a consultant team made a presentation to the park board and gave them a recommendation that the most feasible location to connect the sanitary line is at Three Oaks Road, not Adare.
"Since we're not going to be connecting the sewer line at Adare, there's no issue," Jones said. "The tree's not coming down. The tree's staying there."
As for the aquatic facility itself, Jones said, construction and site clearing has begun.
"Our anticipated opening date's Memorial Day a year from now," Jones said.