Las Olas Boulevard: Fort Lauderdale’s tree-lined Main Street. But the days of the black olive trees that fill the median may be numbered.
“These trees down the median strip are part of our DNA that made Fort Lauderdale what it is today,” said Ted Inserra. He was born and raised in Fort Lauderdale. He doesn’t want to see those trees go anywhere.
“At nighttime, you come down here, it’s just magical down here. I just can’t imagine Las Olas Boulevard without the beautiful median strip going down the middle with all lit-up trees.
Fort Lauderdale Mayor Dean Trantalis said the black olive trees are dying one by one.
“We’ve eliminated a number of them this year alone. Because they’ve just, they’ve died,” he said.
Trantalis said years of studies and community meetings found that if they got rid of the center median, it could make room for wider sidewalks, while keeping street parking.
“Right now we’re looking to perhaps widen the sidewalks and now plant trees along the side of the street rather than the middle of the street so that within 8 to 10 years, hopefully we’ll have that tree canopy that everybody loves about Las Olas,” Trantalis said.
Charlie Ladd is a real estate developer and owns several properties on Las Olas. He points out that if trees are removed, they’ll be replaced with more.
“The city would be removing 14 black olives, relocating two tababuya trees, which are more ornamental trees, and replacing it with roughly 80 canopy, likely oak trees that would line the sidewalks,” Laddd said.
Inserra says he has a better solution.
“Eliminate the on-street parking, then you can widen the sidewalks, which is necessary, and then you keep the median with the trees so it’s a win-win situation for everybody,” he said.
The Fort Lauderdale City Commission will take up the issue on Jan. 20.
