Roebling Park on North Rebecca Street, between Main and Water streets in Saxonburg, features three acres of grass and woods, with a gazebo-style bandstand that is the site of many events.

SAXONBURG — Issues at Roebling Park occupied much of the Saxonburg Borough Council meeting Tuesday night.

The council heard from James O'Connor of A.L.M. Tree Pros that four of the large oaks near the Saxonburg Museum in the park are in bad shape and cannot be saved.

O'Connor said given the stress cracks, age and condition of the trees, it is only a matter of time until one falls on the museum.

Councilwoman Mia Mazza-Petruzzi asked O'Connor if they could be topped, leaving just trunks that would be less likely to topple over in inclement weather.

“You'll end up with more of a problem down the line,” O'Connor said.

He offered to fell the compromised trees, remove the stumps, remove dead limbs on the oaks in the park along Rebecca Street and clean up all his work for a price of $4,600.

The price would be fixed no matter how long the job takes, O'Connor said.

The board discussed the issue of the trees later in the meeting.

Mazza-Petruzzi agreed the price offered by O'Connor is reasonable, but she said the trees should be topped and the trunks left in place.

She said the trunks could eventually be sold to a lumber company, which would profit the borough.

Councilwoman Sherry Weinzierl suggested the council should remediate the problem.

“I say we move forward with it,” she said.

Aaron Piper, board president, said he had not looked at the current budget to see if the borough can afford the work O'Connor recommends.

“We need to do it right, but we need to look at the budget,” Piper said.

Mayor Bill Gillespie pointed out that if the trees were removed, the area could be used for parking at the park and museum.

The council agreed to table the matter until its June meeting in order to give them time to study the financial feasibility of removing the trees.

The board also heard Fred Caesar, Saxonburg Museum curator, report that the deteriorating foundation at the museum prevented a basement door from opening.

He said the foundation needs to be repaired because the museum is the only one in the U.S. that can claim it is the site of the invention of wire rope.