Earlier this week, crews from Samuel Kinder & Brothers, Inc. were busy re-treeing the west side of Hope Street between State and Bradford Streets. The trees that previously graced that side of the street were removed last year as part of an Emerald Ash Borer remediation program, in partnership with RI Department of Transportation and RI Energy.

The Emerald Ash Borer is a larvae that has slowly made its way to the northeast since its discovery in the United States in 2002. The larvae infests Ash trees causing the tree to wither and die. Once weakened, the trees can pose a public safety hazard.

In 2023, 66 trees along Ferry Road, Hope Street and Michael Drive were identified as a ‘severe threat’, ‘moderate threat’, or ‘slight threat’ due to their condition, and were removed by a professional tree service under the direction of RI Energy at no cost to the Town of Bristol.

Steve Saracino, Bristol’s Tree Warden, worked with Elizabeth Kinder of Samuel Kinder & Brothers, Inc. to select appropriate trees to replace the Ash. They include ‘Ivory Silk’ Japanese Tree Lilac, ‘Red Fox’ Katsura, ‘Oklahoma’ Redbud, and Columnar European Hornbeam.