CenterPoint has authority to trim trees and leave behind a mess for homeowners. Here’s what to know
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After cutting trees close to power lines, a tree cutting company hired by CenterPoint Energy left residents to clean up the large tree trunks, branches, leaves and other heavy debris.
On Feb. 5 the company, Lewis Tree Service, initially sent a notice to residents in a Pinehurst neighborhood that they were contracted by CenterPoint to remove trees that could interfere with power lines and possibly cause outages.
“They came over with a little piece of paper and said, ‘Hey, we need to take that tree down,’” said 70-year-old Lowell Ernst. “So I signed it. I didn’t read it.”
They killed a beautiful oak in my backyard. Cut all the branches off one side back to the trunk. In after about 6 weeks it developed shelf mold and died soon after.
They’ve been all over our neighborhood near the Rose Bowl, due to the wildfires out here. Seen hundred year old trees butchered. I don’t think I would allow it, and hire my own guy if they requested I trim mine. Not near powerlines anyway, but you never know.