Protesters gathered at a Pleasanton park Tuesday in an attempt to keep the city from removing an old, sick eucalyptus tree.
Pleasanton officials said the tree at Lions Wayside Park, one of the city's oldest, has been sick with an incurable sulphur fungus that has spread throughout the tree.
The removal is necessary for safety reasons, officials said, as the disease could cause large branches to fall in an area where park visitors are present, the Pleasanton Weekly reported.
A group of residents, however, insist the tree can be saved, at least partially, and they held a quiet, socially distanced sit-in demonstration between 6 a.m. and 7 a.m. Tuesday next to the tree at the downtown park.
The city maintains it has exhausted all possible avenues of saving the tree, the Weekly reported.
The removal process is expected to completed by Friday.
