Dozens of spruce and aspen trees stand in the way of the affordable apartments to be built north of the Wood River YMCA in Ketchum. In hopes of keeping the trees standing, they're being offered to anyone willing to dig them up.
The trees run alongside the road north of the YMCA in the open gravel area and must be removed to extend the sidewalk for a new building, said Neil Morrow, executive director of the Ketchum Community Development Corp.
"They're essentially built in the right of way," he said.
Any trees left will be knocked down when construction of Northwood Place begins in October, Morrow said. The CDC—with the help of Seattle-based Allied Pacific Development—brought the 32,000-square-foot, five-building housing project to the city by way of $7.5 million in federal tax credits.
Anyone interested in the trees should call Jennifer Smith, parks superintendent for the Ketchum City Parks and Recreation Department at 726-7820 by Sept. 10 to reserve a tree. It must then be removed by Sept. 15.
"What we don't want is people showing up at the site and just digging trees up," he said.
Some of the trees are already reserved. For that reason, anyone interested needs to contact Morrow first.
Neil joked that he has "no idea" how to remove a tree, but thinks a simple hand shovel won't do the job, especially with the larger trees farther north on the lot.
Smith suggests hiring a tree spade owner, such as Custom Tree Moving or Hailey Wholesale Nursery.
"Or you could bring a shovel if you want to work really hard," she said.
The price for hiring a tree spade owner would cost between $350 to $400 depending on how far it has to be transported, according to Custom Tree Moving.
"It's cheaper than buying and transporting a tree," Smith said. "Plus, you save a tree."
Smith said that the Parks Department plans on taking a few trees of its own for a planned bike park near Second Avenue and Seventh Street.
Trevon Milliard: trevon@mtexpress.com
