Residents in the Gracywoods Neighborhood Association have been fighting Austin Energy for years on what they perceive as aggressive tree pruning in the North Star Greenbelt.

The GWNA brought in AE staff to the March 6 association meeting to discuss alternatives to the pruning, including raising the towers that carry power lines over the greenbelt, which lies north of Braker Lane near Metric Boulevard, and to The Domain.

Residents said the trees, many of which are oaks, are the heart of their park. They call them "Dr. Seuss trees" for their appearance after pruning occurs.

"We want the trees to survive," said Craig Nazor, who serves as one of the parks committee leaders for the association. "The pruning that happened in the past was very drastic."

Every four years, AE prunes trees beneath power lines, pruning enough to accommodate the regrowth that will occur, AE Arborist Carl Schattenberg said. Live oaks can grow between 10 to 15 feet higher during four years, he said. AE pruned trees in the greenbelt in 2004 and 2009, and staff said pruning will be inevitable for this round, although AE will not remove any trees.

AE created a working group that includes GWNA members Nazor and Bill Glass. The group will discuss alternatives to pruning and met for the first time March 1.

"The option of raising the lines will be part of the discussion, but this type of situation exists all over Austin, not just your neighborhood. If we raise one line, we have to raise all lines," said Jerry Hernandez, interim vice president of Electrical Service Delivery for AE.

The power lies hang about 32 feet from the ground and require a 20- to 25-foot clearance from any object. The cost to raise two of the towers is estimated to be about $400,000–$500,000, Schattenberg said. The towers are currently 120 feet tall, and Elaine Kelly-Piaz, manager for electrical service delivery support services, said they could be raised another 20 feet to an overall height of 140 feet.

History of North Star Greenbelt

The first greenbelt parcel was created in 1981. In 2005, AE acquired that parcel, which has more than 60 trees, including five oaks and two heritage oaks. Other parcels along the greenbelt belong to residents or the city's parks department.

AE planted 106 trees in one area of the greenbelt in 2004 and removed several trees in that year. Many residents said healthy trees were also removed at that time.