A decision on whether to cut down a row of iconic fig trees at Toronto has been deferred.
A petition containing more than a thousand signatures convinced Lake Macquarie councillors to put the brakes on the chainsaws to allow more time for community consultation.
Council staff have recommended replacing the 9 figs in The Boulevard as part of a plan to upgrade the street.
Petitioners have accused staff of trying to rush through a decision in a bid to avoid a similar political controversy which surrounded the removal of Newcastle's Laman Street figs.
