The felling of the beautiful shadows in the Llorenç Villalonga square, in the heart of historic center of PalmaThis has sparked a heated debate between the City Council and local residents. The municipal plan to remove 18 of these large trees has been met with protests, the reading of manifestos, and demands for greater transparency in the management of urban trees.
While the City Council insists that the decision is in response to technical and safety criteriaA large part of the neighborhood and various environmental groups warn that the plaza risks losing an essential part of its landscape identity. For them, these bellasombra trees are not just trees: they are cultural and social heritage of an environment highly valued by residents and visitors.
Neighborhood gatherings and manifesto against "indiscriminate logging"
The citizens' response has been structured around a rally called for noonThe event was attended by around fifty residents of the Sa Calatrava neighborhood. During the event, a manifesto was read denouncing what they consider the "indiscriminate felling" of 17-18 bellasombra trees and questioning the way urban trees are being managed in Palma.
The attendees wanted "to document how the City Council manages its gardens, parks and tree-lined avenues"He criticized the justification for removing these trees, claiming they were diseased and could pose a danger to passersby. In his opinion, the measure is disproportionate and a wider range of solutions should be explored before resorting to chainsaws.
During the rally, a very special appeal was made to painters, draftsmen and art enthusiasts They were invited to bring their materials and capture the bellasombra trees on their canvases and in their notebooks. The intention is to "immortalize" these unique trees within the walled city of Ciutat, recording their presence before they disappear forever.
Families, friends, activists, and even pets have occupied the square, hanging Banners on tree trunks with messages of affection and protest such as "You are part of us, we love you" or "Palma needs you." Some people have placed drawings and paintings on the bulging roots of the trees, reinforcing the idea that these specimens are part of the collective memory of the neighborhood.
The residents' arguments: heritage, biodiversity, and minimal risk
The neighborhood and environmental groups participating in the protest maintain that the bellasombra trees in Llorenç Villalonga Square They are part of the natural and landscape heritage of the area surrounding the city wall, and that replacing them with young trees of other species would represent a loss that would be difficult to reverse. They emphasize that these mature specimens provide much-appreciated shade and a valuable habitat for birds and other urban wildlife.
In their speeches, the organizers recalled that the Charter of BarcelonaA reference document that, although not legally binding, considers urban trees as a genuine heritage resource. Based on this framework, they argue that The square “cannot lose these emblematic trees to be replaced by young specimens” which will take decades to offer a comparable environmental service.
Another key aspect of the neighborhood discourse is the relationship between Climate change, biodiversity loss and tree managementFor critical groups, the current context makes it even more important to preserve mature, well-established trees, rather than opting for a model of accelerated urban green space renewal. They argue that these beautiful shade trees provide thermal regulation, CO₂ absorption, shelter for birds, and a strong symbolic value for the neighborhood.
Regarding security, the protest organizers maintain that The statistical risk of dying from a falling tree is extremely lowThey estimate the risk at approximately 1 in 10 million. In this regard, they recall the fatal accident involving a palm tree in Palma, noting that this incident did not lead to the systematic felling of all the palm trees in Parc de la Mar. Therefore, they consider it inconsistent to now propose eliminating all these palm trees at once.
The residents are demanding that the matter be studied. less drastic alternatives to complete loggingsuch as the gradual replacement of existing trees under the canopy, selective pruning, stabilization work, and more continuous technical monitoring. They also demand access to municipal reports and the ability to compare them with a independent report prepared by specialists outside the City Council.
Criticisms of the lack of transparency and the public space model
Beyond the specific case of these 18 copies, the mobilized groups are focusing on a fundamental debate about the transparency in the management of urban treesThey claim that they have not yet been able to consult in detail the technical reports that would justify the municipal decision and that, without these documents, it is difficult to rigorously assess whether the felling is truly inevitable.
Therefore, they have requested that the comprehensive Parks and Gardens reports and that time be given to external experts to analyze them. Their objective is to obtain a “second opinion” that will allow them to confirm or question the municipal diagnosis, especially regarding the degree of deterioration of the trees and the actual magnitude of the risk to pedestrians.
Another point of contention is the fear that this action could to set a precedent for other wooded areas of PalmaNeighborhood associations fear that if the tree removal in Plaça Llorenç Villalonga is accepted without question, other squares, streets, and parks could face similar decisions with less public outcry. Therefore, many participants are calling for a "stop-the-slash" approach now to prevent a domino effect throughout the rest of the city.
In addition, the organizers have taken advantage of the gathering to criticize the increasing occupation of public space by private terraces and furnitureThey complain that there are increasingly more tables and umbrellas in squares and streets, which, they point out, detracts from the prominence of green spaces and hinders community life. They demand that the future design of the square maintain a "landscape dignity" equivalent to the current one and that it not be dominated by commercial uses.
In the manifesto read during the event, the residents stated that they are going to "to attempt the miracle of saving these trees" They demanded that the mayor personally witness the importance of the bellasombra trees to a neighborhood many describe as "magical." The mobilization is therefore framed as a defense of a city style where mature trees and shaded spaces take priority.
The position of Palma City Council: safety and technical criteria
In response to criticism from citizens' groups, Palma City Council maintains that the entire intervention is in response to exclusively technical and safety criteriaIn a statement, the City Council stressed its commitment to the proper management of trees and regretted that certain groups are trying, in its opinion, to obstruct actions that they consider "essential" to protect those who use these public spaces daily.
According to the municipal team, the The Parks and Gardens department has prepared a technical report The report details the condition of the 18 inspected bellasombra trees. Applying the tree risk management plan protocol, technicians concluded that these trees exhibit structural defects and pathologies similar to those of other trees that have fractured in the past, significantly increasing the risk of falling branches or even trunks.
The City Council reminds everyone that In 2024, several bellasombra trees had to be replaced. because they were in a similar situation. At that time, the felling of six trees was appealed by the Balearic Tree Association (ABA), which led to the precautionary suspension of part of the action. However, the court ultimately dismissed the appeal and upheld the municipal decision, recognizing the City Council's responsibility to act to guarantee public safety.
The court ruling indicated that, in a "weighing of interests"The protection of the lives and physical integrity of people and animals, as well as the prevention of damage to public and private property, had to take precedence over maintaining trees that, according to reports, presented a clear risk of falling. This precedent is one of the main arguments that Cort is now using to justify the new intervention in Llorenç Villalonga Square.
Furthermore, the City Council points out that the increase in adverse weather eventsWith more frequent and intense storms, the danger to trees already suffering from structural problems is further increased. Every time a storm warning is issued, the City Council is forced to preemptively cordon off the entire square to avoid risks, which, in their opinion, reflects the seriousness of the current situation of these bellasombra trees.
Replacement of the bellasombra and future of the square
The planned action is not limited to tree felling, but also includes the Replacement of the 18 bellasombra trees with 20 new treesso that the total number of trees in the square increases. The City Council insists that this plan will guarantee safer and more appropriate growth and conservation of the trees in the medium and long term, preventing incidents of trees falling that could have serious consequences.
However, citizens' groups emphasize that It's not just a question of quantitybut rather in terms of landscape quality and ecosystem functions. They fear that the new trees, being young and likely of different species, will take many years to offer a level of shade, coolness, and visual appeal comparable to that of the existing bellasombra trees. They also doubt that the final design of the plaza will maintain the same sense of identity.
Neighborhood and environmental organizations are demanding that the process of reconfiguring the square be open and participatorywith clear information about which species will be planted, how they will be distributed, and what criteria were used to select them. In their view, citizens should have a say in decisions that so directly affect the urban landscape and the environmental quality of the neighborhood.
Cort points out that the project has been explained at the Palma Verde RoundtableThis is a forum for dialogue between the administration and various stakeholders involved in the urban environment. However, critical groups argue that this communication has not been sufficient: they believe there has been a lack of time and detail to discuss alternatives and that, in practice, the decision only reached the public when the project was already well underway.
Meanwhile, the schedule set by the City Council indicates that The logging will be carried out over two days.Thursday and Friday, unless there are last-minute legal or political developments. Therefore, the mobilized organizations have intensified their actions in recent days, hoping that public pressure can at least reopen the debate and buy time to calmly analyze the technical reports.
The clash between Palma City Council and the residents of Sa Calatrava over the felling of the beautiful shadows of the Llorenç Villalonga square It reflects a tension that is increasingly common in many European cities: how to balance the safety and technical management of trees with the preservation of green heritage, urban biodiversity, and the emotional attachment citizens feel for their most emblematic trees. Amid reports, legal appeals, banners, and manifestos, the future of this Palma square has become a symbol of the broader debate about what kind of city we want to build.
