JEA's flunky, hired tree service butchers the trees of Jacksonville yet again

[Springfield Girl]

The redneck tree hackers from Lewis Tree Service have butchered my gorgeous, mature trees, along with those of many of my neighbors. We spoke with their rude, uncaring,  workers yesterday and informed them that our trees were on JEA's approved list to plant under lines. They have wispy branches that completely lose their leaves at the first cold snap and are only a danger to lines if the whole tree falls. These idiots came back today after we had asked for an arborist and they threatened my husband, saying we had to move our cars or they would tow them, call the police etc. They said they had a signed permit from the Mayor of Jacksonville and that the arborist was a "hard ass" (their words) and that he wouldn't care. Needless to say they completely hacked the trees, cutting the now infamous V in the middle. With all the issues in this city and all that goes undone JEA thinks it is a good use of money to BUTCHER the trees of Jacksonville every couple of years. Oh yea Lewis Tree Service, if you are so worried about the lines maybe you should not have your trucks flying down the street hitting the power lines like I witnessed twice yesterday in fron of my house. MORONS!!!

[Timkin]

Well......

I know who NOT to call for Tree Service. I am sorry this took place.  What a waste of resources.

[Dog Walker]

At least the crew you confronted had someone on it who spoke English.  When the cut the top out of one of my trees in Riverside the entire crew tried to pretend that none on them did.

Lewis Tree Service doesn't have an arborist in Jacksonville anyway and only a couple of crew supervisors for the entire city.

[Gators312]

These guys spent 4 days cutting down one tree in my neighborhood, two doors down from me. 

It was a large tree, but no way it should have taken them more than 1 - 1.5 days to deal with it.   They definitely are milking that JEA contract. 

Coincidentally, my 5 X 10 utility trailer was stolen from my driveway over the weekend.  First time in 7 years living here something was stolen.

[Debbie Thompson]

The mature oaks next to the San Marco Library were cut down too.  :-(  It looks so sad.

[wsansewjs]

I am reporting this to the internal affairs inside JEA.

-Josh

[ChriswUfGator]

I am reporting this to the internal affairs inside JEA.

-Josh

I think you falsely assume they care enough to have such a department, LOL

[dougskiles]

The mature oaks next to the San Marco Library were cut down too.  :-(  It looks so sad.

That wasn't JEA - those trees were dying and a safety hazard.  See this thread from last night:

http://www.metrojacksonville.com/forum/index.php/topic,13545.0.html

[Kay]

JEA is quickly moving on to a certain list I have that currently includes the FDOT and JTA.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

JEA is quickly moving on to a certain list I have that currently includes the FDOT and JTA.

http://www.movieweb.com/v/VILWChpIhsEuPP

[Springfield Girl]

I am reporting this to the internal affairs inside JEA.

-Josh

Let me know if you hear anything. I have left a message for the JEA forrestry dept. but have not received a return call as of yet. I left a detailed message last night letting them know what happened and how upset and distraught I was. I also made it clear multiple times that I expected a call in the morning. Apparently the rude tree guy knew what he was talking about regarding the arborist. It's just so sad that the people who say they care about this city really don't. It's all about greed and money. Butchering as many trees as fast as they can, even if they are no threat and do not need to be trimmed, then collect the check.

[Springfield Girl]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone ever been to another city thats power company cuts huge V's out of the middle of their trees?

[wsansewjs]

I am reporting this to the internal affairs inside JEA.

-Josh

I think you falsely assume they care enough to have such a department, LOL

What? Did I hear that clear enough? Oh right, you don't believe me.

-Josh

[Dog Walker]

Just out of curiosity, has anyone ever been to another city thats power company cuts huge V's out of the middle of their trees?

Right after my encounter with Lewis Tree Hackers last year, we happened to spend some time in New Orleans and noticed that their utility did not trim nearly as severely as Lewis/JEA does and they have much the same or denser tree canopy than we do.  We tried to take pictures of the difference, but it is difficult to see from the ground.

I don't think that anyone could make the case that New Orleans has a lower incidence of windstorms than we do.

[mbwright]

Utility like trimming is terrible.  All they care about is the distance from the line.  The trees suffer, they look horrible, and the tree is often damaged as a result.  There should be no difference in properly trimming or thinning a tree to keep it healthy and balanced, but this is not the case here.  I have seen trees made to look like power poles.  They do everything short of killing the tree.  I guess they would have to pay if they removed it.  You were lucky someone answered in English.  This is also not the correct time to trim trees, as we are going into winter.  Lots of sucker growth is not good.

I now live in Tallhassee, and the trees here are beautiful because of the tree ordinance in place.  There is great pride and beauty.  The city does not care. I've spoken with some of the major companies Aspluduh, Lewis and Davey, and while they have certified arborists in the company, they do not use them as they should.  There is minimal training for the road crews, and clearing the line in the quickest time is the goal.