September/October 2016 | The Davey Bulletin 21
"It was a high-pressure project,"
Crawford said. "We had a lot to do in
a short time frame."
Many trees had to be removed or
transplanted. To maintain the island's
natural integrity, the contractor wanted
all removed trees to be recycled.
The Davey employees left all recycled
wood on the island, which would later
be crafted into benches and artwork
featured throughout the now flourish-
ing Island community.
Davey crews competently completed
the original contracted work on time
and within budget.
"We were very capable and pro-
fessional, which led to our client
expanding what they needed done,"
Crawford said. The crew ended up
completing 15 extra days of newly
contracted work, which put the client
ahead in its construction schedule.
The Davey crews worked briskly
but safely, removing around 80 trees
each day. This was the largest crane
project the Davey employees had ever
worked on, and they used three cranes
onsite simultaneously.
Jaime Merritt, foreman for the Santa
Cruz R/C office, led his seven-person
crew to complete two straight
weeks' worth of crane work.
"The volume of work was very
memorable," Merritt said. "It was cool
to meet other guys from residential
and surgery and see how they work."
Together, the crews removed 15,000
trees, mainly invasive eucalyptus and
black acacia, from the two islands in
eight weeks. The project called for
many removals, but developers plan
to plant at least one tree for each
tree removed.
This success speaks to how
seamless the crews came together
to master this project on time,
Crawford said.
"The project showcased strong
communication between the many
public and private agencies involved,"
Crawford said. "Responsiveness was
essential to minimizing the project
cost while meeting the customer's
immediate need."
From a safety standpoint, Crawford
offered this advice for big jobs with
multiple crews. "I would see how
they handled the more straightforward
tree removals before sending them
to do something they might not have
a lot of experience in. I (also) learned
you can never judge the size of a job
by the first phone call."
Davey's Montana surgery crew worked steadily
to remove hazard trees around the island.
Davey offices on the Treasure
Island project:
South Austin R/C office
North Houston R/C office
Northwest Energy account
PG&E Sierra Div account
PG&E South account
San Diego R/C office
San Francisco R/C office
Santa Cruz R/C office
PG&E Southern Coast account
PG&E Concord account
Las Vegas R/C office
PG&E Diablo account
PG&E Silverado account
PG&E North Bay account
Santa Cruz R/C office
A TREASURED TEAM
Davey's Larry Everett uses a crane to pick up pieces of a
large trunk after a tree removal on Yerba Buena Island.
Davey's Nick Crawford captured the view
from Yerba Buena Island to Treasure Island
amidst a tree removal project on the island.
