MATTAPOISETT — Some residents arrived at the Mattapoisett Fire Station Wednesday, Feb. 28 for a Tree Committee meeting only to find the doors locked.

The meeting room had reached full capacity minutes before the scheduled 6 p.m. start. Those who arrived right around 6 p.m. got back in their vehicles and went to Mattapoisett Town Hall to watch a livestream of the meeting. More than 70 people joined via Zoom from their homes.

The meeting was so anticipated because it featured a presentation regarding the impact a potential project would have on trees on Water Street, Main Street, Beacon Road and Marion Road.

The project, which would certify sidewalks under Americans with Disabilities Act and be funded by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, calls for the removal of 28 roadside trees.

The Mattapoisett Select Board approved a 25% design of the project on Nov. 14, but it would still need to be voted upon by residents at Town Meeting in order for the plan to move any further.

The presentation was primarily led by Tree Committee Chair Sandy Hering, who said that the meeting was simply meant to be informational.

“We are here because a few months ago conditions for the road project, which has been in the works for a long time, changed,” said Hering. “The ADA clearance requirements that are four feet instead of the state’s three feet and [engineering firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin] …reported unexpected cutback distances for trees and branches near utilities.”

Vanasse Hangen Brustlin Inc is the engineering firm contracted by the town to design the 25% plan for the sidewalk project.

Hering said that the current plan would mean the removal of “some of [Mattapoisett’s] best trees,” including 18 mature oak trees.

According to Hering, the removal of these trees would result in an “irreversible tragedy”.

“The tree committee believes that our street trees really add to the beauty of our town,” she said.

“Trees provide the shade that makes hot summer days tolerable for public events,” said Tree Committee member Dianne Tsitsos.

According to the presentation, over 20 replacement trees would be planted around locations where trees had been removed.

Tsitsos added that mature trees with strong root structures have a better chance to survive a tropical storm than a younger replacement tree.

Mattapoisett Select Board member Tyler Macallister spoke to the standing-room-only crowd after the conclusion of the presentation.

“I was on the Select Board when this [project] started in 2014,” said Macallister. “We started looking at [the Transportation Improvement Program]. We said ‘Well, if we do this the right way, we can actually get the state to pay for the majority of this.’”

Macallister said that the town would lose about $10 million, the current expected cost of the project, in state funding if the project is shot down by residents at Town Meeting.

“When we first started this, we were looking at $6 million, then it was $8 million, it is closer to $10 million now,” said Macallister.

He added that if the town went through with the project internally, it would cost each Mattapoisett taxpayer around $3,800 over a 15-year period.

“In 2016, Town Meeting approved $300,000 to go to the 10% design which we got approved in 2018,” said Macallister. “In 2021, we spent $450,000 to go to the 25% design.”

Macallister said that in recent years, ADA requirements have changed, and so have the people who are making decisions for the Department of Transportation.

According to Macallister, the same plan that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation agreed with in 2018 to 2020, which included keeping as many trees as possible, was later turned down after a change in administration.

According to Hering, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation will soon hold a public hearing in order to receive feedback on the plan from Mattapoisett residents.