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Date: 7/27/94 Time: 09 EXPANDED TREE PLANTING PROGRAM July 27, 1994 To: Susan Hoyt, City Administrator From: Linda Treeful, City Forester Re: Expanded Tree Planting Program This turned out to be longer than one paragraph but this way you have all the information. if you condense it, please let me see it before you put it in the budget document. Feel free to call me if you have questions. p The present city policy is one of replacement: when a boulevard tree is removed due to disease or storm damage, a replacement tree is planted the following spring, if space is available on the boulevard. Replanting cannot be done for a number of reasons including being too close to a fresh stump (the distance varies depending on the size of the tree removed), street stop sign or other sign, fire hydrant, driveway or connecting sidewalk. Because of these replanting limitations, the city has been removing more trees each year than it plants, which, over time, will result in a net loss of boulevard trees. An Expanded Tree Planting Program is proposed to counter act the loss of boulevard trees. Over 300 potential planting sites were identified on the city boulevards during data collection for the tree inventory. These include the following: 1.. Sites where underground light cables interfered with planting, i.e the north side of Folwell between Fulham and Coffman; this cable was moved back behind the curb during road reconstruction last summer; there is a similar cable running along the south side of Folwell between Hoyt and Coffman; 2. Sites where stumps prohibited replanting; after about 7 years, the stumps should be decomposed and could be planted on or closer to; 3. Sites at junctions between businesses and residences, i.e. the west side of Arona along the parking lot behind the North Home businesses has a wide green space roughly 35' x 150' which could hold about 5 trees; 4. Vacant sites on streets with boulevard trees where the resident has requested a tree because: 1) they just moved into the house and noticed their neighbors all have boulevard trees but they don't; 2) they removed a private tree from their front yard, Le. a diseased elm; 3) they built a new house and would like a boulevard tree in front of it; 4) they don't want to see the Pizza Hut sign every time they look out their window (California resident); 5. Sites on county roads such as Hoyt, Hamline and Snelling; the county stopped the city planting on these boulevards a number of years ago; Hoyt is being turned over to the city and could be planted on again. Sites on streets which have never had boulevard trees, but have plenty of city easement, such as St. Mary's and Tatum, could also be included in the Expanded Tree Planting Program. These sites are not included in the figure of 300 potential planting sites.