Stump of tree that fell into church to be removed

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City workers will remove the remnants of a tree that fell into the stained glass window of Christ Church of Riverdale, the Parks and Recreation Department said, following a flurry of community requests. 

The tree was felled by a storm on April 3, smashing through the window of the Presbyterian church on 5030 Henry Hudson Parkway between the two morning services.

“It didn’t knock the window out totally, but put some significant holes in the window. Glass shattered and went 20 feet into the sanctuary,” Rev. Andrew Butler said in an interview at the time. 

In the aftermath of the storm, Rev. Butler, the church’s rector, said the Parks Department were fastidious in removing the tree, but left the stump and roots protruding from the sidewalk.

“It is huge, uprooted and very dangerous,” Rev. Butler told The Press in mid-July.

Rev. Butler said that in an effort to have the stump removed, he contacted the Parks Department twice, but had his work-order request denied both times.  The Parks Department does not remove stumps, the reverend recalled being told. 

City employees redirected Rev. Butler to the Transportation Department, since the stump affected the sidewalk and road, but that request was also denied, he said.

“It’s the whole situation about passing the buck,” he said. “This is a situation here: The tree fell and was uprooted, and it’s very dangerous.”

After a Press inquiry to both the Transportation and Parks departments, a Parks Department spokesman said his agency would be removing the stumps within a few months.

“We recognize the community’s desire to remove the stump at 5030 Henry Hudson Parkway and we will be working to do so in the coming months,” Mario Lopez of the Parks Department said in an email to The Press. “We appreciate the local residents who have taken concern to this matter.”

Andrew Butler, Christ Church of Riverdale, Parks Department, Fallen Tree, Anthony Capote

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