North Wesley Road’s iconic boulevard tree, a protected native bigleaf maple, was just given a death sentence by Saanich Parks.  Neighbors were shocked to find a notice posted on Mother Maple on June 30, 2025:  “This tree will be removed for service improvements combined with existing tree condition.”  

Two very well respected local arborists have recently visited this tree and have deemed her healthy and an incredibly valuable community asset. They stated emphatically that she does not need to be removed, as there are sound arboricultural management methods to accommodate the infrastructural upgrades necessary for the development at 5032 Wesley, while protecting the tree and her root zone.  

Mother Maple has been offering a resting place for decades to children walking and biking to school, whether Cordova Bay Elementary or Claremont High.  Her massive canopy offers much-needed shade on hot days to walkers-by.  She absorbs carbon dioxide and quite literally breathes oxygen into our community.  

Mother Maple is indeed one of the scarce “exceptional trees” within Saanich, with a crown spread from limb to limb of 16 to 18 meters (well over the 11 meters that defines an exceptional tree).  To quote Saanich’s Urban Forest Strategy 2024 - 2034, "Exceptional trees hold cultural significance, support biodiversity, and provide significant ecosystem services that are difficult to replace. Approximately 10 per cent of Saanich’s overstorey trees have individual canopy areas exceeding 100 m2 – equivalent to a tree with a crown spread from limb to limb of over 11 m.  These trees provide 25 per cent of Saanich’s total canopy area. The scarcity of large trees, especially within the Urban Containment Boundary, underscores the importance of their retention and preservation."

We area asking Saanich to immediately pause the planned destruction of this tree, review the rationale and reporting that led to the decision to remove her, and obtain an independent third party review.  

Mother Maple has a long, healthy life still ahead of her. She must be worked around, not taken down.  Please come and visit this majestic tree located on the hill in Cordova Bay just north of Claremont School. You’ll see that she is an incredibly valuable Saanich asset, and simply must be saved.  

For additional information please email iacobus@shaw.ca

Thank you :)