Planning board approves removal of 43 trees for Centerville sewer staging, requires phased replanting

The Lowell Planning Board on July 20 approved a request to remove 43 public trees at 61 1st Street Boulevard to create a construction materials laydown area for phase 1 of the Centerville Sewer Separation project. Gordon Bergeron, interim engineering manager for the Lowell Regional Wastewater Utility, told the board the removals would support an active staging area the utility has used for months and that the utility does not intend to remove trees unnecessarily.

Bergeron said the applicant would provide tree protection and mitigation measures, including temporary fencing, marking of trees to remain, a contractor‑coordinated watering plan and in‑kind replacement if any replanted trees die. "We're more than happy to develop that plan, as a tentative approval condition," he said. Resident James Harrington urged the board to be cautious, saying recent work at the reservoir left promised plantings undone: "You're doing a great job on the planning board, and you're making conditions that people should meet. They're not meeting them, and I'm not sure what can be done to accommodate that."