SHORELINE, Wash. — As Trish Woollcott walks among the trees in her home of Shoreline, she can't help but think about one thing.
“What comes to mind is death by 1,000 cuts,” she says.
One thousand cuts – to nearly that many trees.
Shoreline plans to remove 274 trees over a three-quarter-mile stretch of North 175th Street between Interstate 5 and Aurora Avenue.
That's in addition to 317 removed earlier this year along 145th Street to better connect commuters with the soon-to-open light rail station. Including trees removed along side streets, the total is close to 800.
That’s 800 trees that won't be cleaning our air, providing shade, managing stormwater and fighting climate change.
“We're not against progress,” says Woollcott, “but we think there should be less of an effort to destroy our natural environment.”
Shoreline officials say protecting trees is important, but so is protecting people.
The city wants to widen the road in spots and add bike lanes and sidewalks along busy 175th Street.
Those sidewalks are especially important because of the nearby elementary school where kids walk every day -- partly along a narrow path barely two feet wide.
“We have a lot of residents who are passionate about the trees,” says city spokesman Eric Bratton. “So, trees are important to us, but for this project, we need to focus on the safety of kids. We can't do that project without taking and losing some trees.”
Protesters are pressing Shoreline City Hall to come up with different solutions -- like narrowing the width of the proposed 13-foot sidewalks to save at least some of the trees.
“I don't want to beat city hall,” says Woollcott. “I want to work with city hall.”
For now, supporters are tying orange ribbons around the trees lining 175th, signifying their potential demise -- hoping city hall will see the forest for the trees.
“It doesn't have to be this way. It's not either or,” says Woollcott.
The city says it is preserving about 200 trees and plans to plant 800 more, but right now, it plans to start removing the trees along 175th Street next year.