Thanks all - Here's a response to questions from Brad --

The tree was removed because it was diseased and a couple of large
branches had already fallen. The stump and surrounding area was
ground down about 18". This means that a circlular area maybe 12 feet
in diameter(?) was ground down.

The area outside of this still has roots because the tree was easily
at least 30' tall. So, the larger roots are sprouting tree suckers.
There are maybe 6 of them at this time.

Geographically I'm located in San Jose, California.

I hope this helps explain the situation.

-Laura