LETTER: Tree-cutting mess shows city has not learned flood lesson

To Ozaukee Press:

It appears that Port Washington’s city forester, Jon Crain, has learned nothing from the massive flooding last summer,  which caused hundreds of thousands of dollars of damage to residents of the Lighthouse condominiums near the mouth of Valley Creek.

He was quoted in a news story in last week’s Ozaukee Press, headlined “Residents appalled by city’s tree mess,” that even though the debris from trimming over 300 trees was left in place along the creek, he “considered the flood potential to be minimal,” and “even if the creek takes some of the debris downstream it would probably not cause damage to houses in the area.”         

Need I remind him that one of the main causes of the recent flood was the accumulation of debris that plugged the culvert near the mouth of the creek, causing it to overflow downstream.

It’s unconscionable that while the city is considering solutions to alleviate the flooding problem it allows the city forester and We Energies to take actions that could make it worse.

If We Energies and the city forester determine that these trees are a hazard, then they also need to find a way to contain or remove the debris.

Bob Wilke
Port Washington