More than 80 people gathered outside Centrelink and the offices of legal firm Campbell Paton Taylor to demand Orange City Council make assurances that the trees will not be felled, irrespective of whether the mall goes ahead.

A council statement earlier this week said the trees should be removed because their roots had lifted sections of the footpath creating trip hazards and shop flooding issues.

It said tree roots had grown into kerbside gutters interfering with storm water flow and causing damage to buildings.

Noted sustainability expert Michael Mobbs travelled from Sydney to support the crowd.

It was his first time seeing the trees, and he was dumbfounded that anyone would consider removing them.

"This is a beautiful strip," he said.

"I can't understand or believe that people would cut these trees down.

"When I see trees like this I try and imagine it without the trees, and what I see is an increase in aircon bills between five and 20 percent, and a reduction in rainfall, as trees are magnets.

"I see people now who are stopping and shopping, people with dogs pausing in the shade.

"Take away the shade and people will be carrying their dogs because it will be too hot."

Mr Mobbs said he took the temperature in a car parked on Anson Street in the sun and it was above 70C.

"When we parked in the shade it went down to 40C."

Organisers couldn't have chosen a better day, with temperatures under the trees significantly cooler than on the footpath outside Woolworths.

"I'm here because I believe these trees should remain, for many reasons," said Melanie Ashton.

"They're not only part of the heritage of this town, but they're the basis of fantastic ideas that could help the economy and local businesses."

Mrs Ashton suggested paving stones paying tribute to fallen soldiers who were alive when the trees were planted, or using the trees' canopy for Christmas lights.

One of the organisers, Kate Hook, said "the trees touch on a lot of issues, but mostly people are here because they just love trees".

"There was such a response when people heard about this," she said.

Campbell Paton and Taylor lawyers issued a statement ahead of the protest, saying they are "extremely disappointed that council and the councillors are considering removing the iconic plane trees from Anson Street", and that any such move would be "madness".

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