Complaints about the way Alabama Power trims trees near power lines in Mobile have prompted a city councilman to schedule a special meeting to examine the utility’s practices.
The issue surfaced after a Dauphin Street homeowner told the Mobile City Council that work crews had severely cut back large, mature oak trees on her property without adequate warning. She argued that ordinary residents face restrictions on trimming their own trees while the utility operates with far more latitude, leaving what she described as an unsightly tangle of poles and lines throughout residential streets.
Councilman Fred Richardson responded by calling for an August committee meeting, telling colleagues it was time to take a closer look at how the company handles vegetation management citywide after fielding numerous complaints from constituents.
An external affairs manager for Alabama Power in the Mobile area said the company’s crews clear growth that encroaches on its right-of-way for safety and reliability reasons, and that the practice is applied consistently across the tens of thousands of square miles the utility serves. She said the company works with the city’s Urban Forestry Department to meet local expectations and believes the homeowner was notified in advance, as is standard practice before trimming begins in a neighborhood.
Council members offered differing views on how to balance safety with the aesthetics of Mobile’s historic, tree-lined streets. The councilman representing the district where the homeowner lives said he wants the utility’s work done as sensitively as possible given the significance of century-old oak trees to the character of older neighborhoods. Another council member noted that many newer subdivisions on the west side of the city already have buried power lines, unlike some busier commercial corridors, and suggested residents might eventually push for more lines to be placed underground.
The city attorney told the council that state law gives the utility significant leeway when it comes to trimming near its lines, though the city may have some ability to weigh in on aesthetic standards. Richardson said the council would rely on its attorney to research what authority, if any, the city holds over the matter before the committee meeting, where Alabama Power representatives are expected to explain their tree-trimming process in more detail.