Several oak trees in Centennial Park in Peru are infected with Oak Wilt. It’s a fungus that gets into the leaves and the wood of the trees. Fire Chief Jeff King says there are forty-four oak trees in the park and half have got the fungus. He says he wants to hire an arborist for about $19,000 to treat the trees.
King says there is at least one tree that will have to be taken out. He also says it’s not guaranteed that twenty-two trees that have it will be able to be saved. Mayor Ken Kolowski says the trees are historic, so it’s a good thing that the council would be doing. The city council still has to approve hiring the arborist. It could be done at their next city council meeting on September 26th.