New home for City Beach pines
A long-time City Beach resident gave up its beachfront views yesterday, aided by a big crane and plenty of manpower.
The 22-tonne Norfolk Island pine was dug up and replanted nearby at the intersection of Oceanic Drive and Challenger Parade in a matter of hours as part of a planned redevelopment of the foreshore.
The tree was the first of six to be moved to make way for the $18 million City Beach redevelopment, which will include a new surf club and restaurant strip.
The other five trees will be positioned around the new buildings, and another four trees will stay.
Town of Cambridge chief executive Jason Buckley said the operation was the work of six months' careful planning that required roads to be closed and a crane to swing the tree from its old location to its new home.
He said the tree, estimated to be between 50 and 60 years old, would be stabilised with support wires and monitored for two years.
"It is a big operation and obviously we want the trees to survive the relocation," he said.
"These trees are iconic for that location, they define that part of City Beach and it would have been quite a travesty if we removed them completely for this development."
The development, which will include landscaped lawns and public seating, is expected to be finished in time for the 2015-16 summer.
