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Contractors armed with chainsaws and axes brought to an end the campaign to save an historic Norfolk pine at Snells Beach last Thursday. Despite a last minute stand by Auckland resident Charlie Cottrell-Jury, who climbed the tree at 5.30am intending to stay aloft until Auckland Council reconsidered the resource consent, Boathouse Bay developer Vavasour Investments sent in the contractors late in the afternoon to ring bark the tree. When Charlie lowered himself in an attempt to stop the work, he was arrested for trespassing and taken away by police. The giant tree was expected to take five days to completely remove. It is believed that it was planted by early settler James Snell in the mid-1800s. To view the confrontation with contractors, see the video.
