I was thinking maybe an arborist could tell whether it actually needed to come down, or maybe brace it in some way to make it safe. There was a situation recently around here where a tree succumbed to the emerald ash borer and they needed to bring in an extra large crane to get it out of the backyard avoiding utility lines. It cost $8,000 according to the CBC TV interview, but that was better than another estimate of $20,000!
