TOLEDO (WTOL) - Neighbors on Brookside in Ottawa Hills are experiencing growing pains. Decades old trees have to be cut down for a construction project.
The Ottawa Hills Village Manager Marc Thompson estimates that the trees, which are on Village property are about 50 years old. He said the village along with the City of Toledo thought replacing the lead pipes underneath are more important.
The pipe repairs that are causing the trees to be cut down weren't going to happen for a couple of years, but that timeline was sped up because they are completely re-doing the road anyway and this would allow them to not have to tear up the brand new roadway.
Thompson says he understands people's frustrations, but needs to be concerned about safety first.
"There would have been tremendous root damage even on the others, so we made the judgement that it would've been more important to get the lead out of the water system and that's what we've done," Thompson said.
Thompson says every resident getting a new pipe should have been notified by mail and those who were having a tree torn down in front of their home also received a separate letter letting them know.
The village expects all construction on the road including the replacement of the pipes to go through summer and the fall.