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A couple of days ago, someone tweeted a picture of a denuded ginkgo tree in front of the Corcoran Street Safeway. Local ANC Commissioner Bob Meehan quickly sounded the alarm on local listserves, accusing Safeway of hacking the tree’s limbs in order to allow passersby to better see Safeway’s sign. “This tree anchors this block’s ginko canopy on the North side that is about to turn a gorgeous yellow, for which this block is famous and beloved,” Meehan huffed. “We on the 1700 block of Corcoran are outraged by this callous destruction of the street’s beauty and the city’s tree canopy.”
Well, Safeway is sorry. According to spokesman Craig Muckle, their tree-trimming contractor “sent a crew over that was not experienced in appropriate tree pruning.”
“They have a right to be upset,” Muckle said. “That was not our intent to have a tree like that hacked up to that degree.”
Given that the ginkgo is probably a goner, the contractor will be replacing the tree with all due haste. In the mean time, mourn for what it used to look like, and get your fall colors elsewhere.