On Thursday evening, the Demorest City Council approved concept plans for a new parking lot at City Hall. The design, tied to relocating the city’s post office, would come at a steep cost: the removal of two historic oak trees that many residents consider part of the town’s cultural pulse.
The measure passed 3–1, with Councilman Jimmy Davis casting the lone dissenting vote.
City Manager Mark Musselwhite explained that the city faces little choice under international building code.
“The international building code requires at least nineteen spaces for a post office,” Musselwhite said. “We have to be outside of the dripline which is as long as the limbs are, which wouldn’t provide enough parking.”
For now, the post office remains at its Georgia Street location, a property owned by the Downtown Development Authority.
When Roots Run Deep
Mayor Jerry Harkness, a life time local, shared the city’s concerns for safety, citing the findings of arborist Chris James from McAllister Tree Service.
According to a quote from a Now Habersham report, “We had an arborist come out and drill both sides of the trees to see how they were,” Harkness said. “The one furthest away from us had no roots on one side. It’s at a very high risk of falling at any moment.”
Even so, residents urged the council to seek another opinion.
“Could we perhaps call down to the UGA extension service and see if another arborist can inspect the trees?” asked Demorest local LeAnne Lutz.
Musselwhite agreed, telling the audience he planned to gather additional evaluations before the next council meeting and encouraged them to do the same.
A Community Speaks
Passion filled the room as longtime residents stepped forward to defend the oaks.
Rebecca Shedd, reflecting on years of commuting to Atlanta but always returning to Demorest, pressed the council to slow down.
“I want you to do all that you can and at least give us another option, so that you can make a good decision for this community,” she said. “I’m not opposed to change. I’m an innovator, it’s what I do for a living. But, I am opposed to doing things with haste, and to me with these two plans, I don’t see an option of what we all want, which is to save those trees.”
Many voices online echo strong support for saving the trees, with some suggesting the council will not listen no matter what is said. Yet that does not reflect the real dialogue between council members and constituents, or the genuine emotion several panel members expressed about the oaks. After all, council leaders offered to seek additional expert opinions—clear evidence that this is still very much a conversation.
In fact, few city council meetings allow the kind of open and easy exchange as seen in Demorest. (Linked HERE is one example of how limited expression can be during a contentious meeting in Clayton, Georgia.) Those who feel strongly about the issue might consider attending the next Demorest City Council meeting in person, rather than posting defeatist language online that neither reflects the reality of the dialogue nor helps protect the oaks—or the concern for public safety.
Despite several online comments, many seats remained vacant in the chamber.
A Divided Council
Davis, who voted against the plan, asked his colleagues to consider alternatives.
“I think we should look at other options,” Davis said. “One of the options would be to leave the trees alone and the post office where it is. We’re going to spend more than a million dollars just inside this building.”
His comments drew a pointed response from Councilman Donnie Bennett.
“Where have you been the last few months when we’ve been talking about this, Jimmy? You’ve been sitting right there and you haven’t said any of this,” Bennett said.
Other members acknowledged the heartache of the decision.
“I just want to say when I first heard the initial arborist report, I cried,” Councilmember Florence Allen said. “You read the comments on social media, and some people are going overboard.”
Looking Ahead
The council emphasized that no one wants to see the oaks come down. Still, the concept plans leave little room for compromise if the city is to provide the post office with required parking.
The Demorest City Council will meet again on Oct. 7, when members expect to review additional arborist reports and updated project pricing.
