Eucalyptus trees: Gone but not forgotten Eucalyptus trees: Gone but not forgotten (March 24, 2004)

Many residents of The Sequoias retirement community in Portola Valley will miss the four giant eucalyptus trees that were dismantled, limb by limb, to the buzz of chain saws all last week.

The four huge trees shaded Sausal Pond in the Windy Hill Open Space Preserve. They were removed by the Midpeninsula Regional Open Space District because they are not native, they pose a fire hazard, and they tend to drop big branches.

"This is a popular spot," said Ana Ruiz, open space planner for the district. "Huge branches keep falling off the trees. It's a hazard to people."

Some day -- finances permitting -- the district plans to build a new deck allowing visitors to view herons, ducks, and other birds on Sausal Pond.

The trees were about 90 feet tall and the cost for the removal was about $17,000, said Rudy Jurgensen, a spokesman for the open space district.

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