Woman climbs down from giant fir after two-day protest; tree quickly cut down
Workers cutting down the giant fir tree that was the focus of a woman's protest.
POULSBO, Wash. -- A Kitsap County woman ended her battle against a housing development after spending two days and nights at the top of a giant fir. Now, the tree is no more.
Kimberly Cisneros says the view from her bedroom will never be the same and she can't look outside her window after crews chopped down her favorite tree Thursday.
"It was right outside by bedroom window," Cisneros said. "I could see it. It was just significant. It was like a pillar."
Cisneros sat near the top of the tree for two full days and nights. Police asked her to come down but she refused. But Thursday, after 48 hours, she willingly climbed down from the tree that sat feet from her home in Poulsbo.
"I think we’re losing a really important part of what this state is all about," she said.
During the two-day event, Cisneros attracted a lot of attention and fans. Several people came out to cheer her on during her fight.
Nico Honeylion is a local arborist. "We live in Kitsap for a reason. Because it’s quiet and a lot of woods and water. And now it’s just disappearing."
Cisneros says despite the fact that her favorite tree was reduced to lumber, she still feels like her protest did a lot of good.
"If anything comes out of this, what I’d like to see happen is the community come together and realize we have a strong voice and to start exerting that," she said.