The Tucson Department of Transportation wants to remind people to not trim the city's trees. Illegal pruning is an issue TDOT deals with a few times per month.
Gary Wittwer, landscape architect for the TDOT, believes someone took it upon themselves to prune a city-owned tree on 5th Street and Stone Avenue instead of calling the city to do the job.
He says the tree may have been blocking the stop sign or oncoming traffic, which is a safety concern the department would take care of as quickly as possible.
"We really want to try to have professional people prune our trees, because it really is important to prune them correctly. Improper pruning can cause damage to the tree and long term disease," Wittwer said.
A city employee came by on Wednesday to clean up the debris.
Wittwer said the city will try to save the damaged tree, but it will cost more time and resources.
If you an issue with overgrown trees, call TDOT at 520-791-3154.
