A Facebook post on Tuesday had some Bangor residents upset about the loss of more greenery in the Queen City.

Jeff Tuttle, Townsquare Media Bangor
Jeff Tuttle, Townsquare Media Bangor
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Members of the Facebook group 'You knew you grew up in Bangor, Maine when...' had some mixed but strong reactions to a photo of a tree stump from what was a large silver maple tree located on French St. in Bangor right next to the Salvation Army.

What followed was a storm of past and present Bangor residents who either were glad to see the tree gone (because it was growing too big and branches would often fall off) or were sad to see another tree gone from the Bangor scenery and history. Some wondered why the tree had to be cut at all since it wasn't interfering with power lines.

David Rice, Bangor's city forester said, "I hated to cut it down."

He estimated the tree to be between 80-90 years old, but said he had not counted the rings in the stump to confirm its age. He said crews trimmed the tree a couple years ago, but officials with the Salvation Army advised him there were still large pieces of wood falling from the top onto the ground below.

"It was in terrible shape," said Rice, adding he thought recent construction in the area may have damaged the roots.

The Salvation Army put out a statement in response to the now-deleted Facebook post.

"The City of Bangor removed a diseased tree from city property on French Street bordering The Salvation Army's property. The tree had dropped several large dead branches onto the street and it was determined that for the safety of residents and their property, it needed to be removed. The tree was not on The Salvation Army's property nor did The Salvation Army pay to have it removed."

Here's what the tree looked like before it was cut.

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