AUSTIN, Texas -- The fate of a beloved century-old oak tree in Southwest Austin was the subject of debate for several years.

Now, a big move and three years later, the so-called 'Taco Bell' tree has settled into its new home across Highway 290.

"It's still there. It's still always a difficult enterprise to move a big tree like this but it's sprouting vigorously this year, so pretty happy to see how it is," said Heritage Tree Care’s Vincent Debrock.

But it didn’t look quite the same.

"Well, we had an event last year where a neighboring tree fell on it, in that major section of that tree,” he said. “Fortunately, damage was taken care of and we still have a decent canopy to work with," said Keith Mars, Austin City Arborist.

Outside of the forces of the nature, the 128-year-old heritage tree enjoys the city's protection.

"We are trying to protect the golden goose of why so many people move here in the first place. It's a large part of what makes Austin, Austin," said Mars.

Trees that are at least 24-inches in diameter are considered heritage trees. That means, should development occur in the property they're on, builders would have to apply for a special permit to chop them down.

"In part of why our community values these trees so much is that we know that they're so rare. We know that these trees are less than one-percent of the total amount of trees in our community and we really, really treasure them," said Mars.

But heritage tree protections could be a thing of the past if a proposed senate bill becomes law. It would allow the landowner to do what they want to any tree in their property, including cutting them down, without regard for city ordinances.

"There's always that potential that there could be a fair amount of harm to this great canopy that we have in the city," said Mars.

While it would give more room for development, it could cause irreparable damage.

"That profit will be at the cost of the city's infrastructure that they've been trying to preserve," said Debrock. "It's really easy to build things, but we can't build a tree so we have to preserve them."

According to Austin city ordinance, oak, pecan, bald cypress and some walnut trees are considered "heritage trees."

There are about 100 trees with that designation in the city.