HomeMy WebLinkAbout2009-0305 Tree MINUTES
ASHLAND TREE COMMISSION
MINUTES
March 5, 2009
CALL TO ORDER –Chair John Rinaldi called the Ashland Tree Commission meeting to order at 6:00 p.m. on March 5, 2009 in the Siskiyou Room
in the Community Development and Engineering Services Building located at 51 Winburn Way, Ashland, OR.
Commissioners Present
Council Liaison
Laurie Sager
Kate Jackson (absent)
John
Rinaldi Jr.
Zane Jones
Staff Present
Bobby Townsend (tuned in by phone)
Amy Anderson, Assistant Planner
Anne Rich, Parks Department
APPROVAL OF MINUTES
February
5, 2009 Tree Commission Minutes – Commissioner Jones stated that language in the minutes relating to the Electric Department Report needs to state: Dave Wood prunes by taking the leaders,
arborists remove the laterals leaving him nothing to prune back too. Rinaldi/Jones m/s to approve the minutes of February 5, 2009 with the modification. Voice vote: all AYES, Motion
passed. The minutes were approved with modification.
WELCOME GUESTS
Russ Neff attended the meeting to observe, he is interested in the Commission. Russ is a retired Landscape Architect
from Washington DC and he now lives in Ashland.
UPCOMMING ITEMS
Arbor Week Events - Amy will write a Press Release and post the information to the City of Ashland website.
Arbor Week
Presentation
Tuesday, April 7th – 7 PM at Council Chambers the Mayor is scheduled to read the Arbor Week proclamation and Oregon Department of Forestry will give the Tree City USA presentation.
Commi
ssioners Townsend, Rinaldi and Sager agreed to attend. Amy will provide them with a script informing the City Council of the scheduled April events and informing the City Council of
the Tree Commissions goals.
Tree Plaque Installation
The Commission would like to invite the new Mayor, the City Council members, City Administrator Martha Bennett and former City
Administrator Brian Almquist who used to live at the residence.
Tree Walk at Southern Oregon University
Anne Rich and Commission Jones along with Casey from Upper Limb-it will be
guiding the tree walk.
Sign-ups through Ashland Parks and Recreation Department and North Mountain Nature Center
GOAL SETTING
Education and outreach
Classes at North Mountain
Nature Center
Tree Seminars – sponsored by the Tree Commission working with professionals (landscape architects, arborists,
Pruning clinics for property owners on how to maintain their street trees
Tree Walks
More Back page Articles
Code Changes
Amend Heritage Tree Language (if joining state group for
Heritage Tree – there is a definition)
Remove the deed restriction
Contact property owners
Create map
Distinctive Tree List
Building Permits and Tree protection – outside
of Planning Action
Education about cost savings / values; increases in tree preservation
Landscape Professional Ordinance (sign offs on irrigation plan and planting plan installations)
Arbori
st Retention throughout the duration of the project
Add Arbor Week items – Earthday, Tree City USA,
National Arbor Day Foundation Tree Line USA program– look into the requirements
Group
meeting with Forest Lands – Chris Chambers
Urban Forester position – oversight of all tree activities – have other departments fund Dave Woods position so that he can do the types of
tree maintenance that the property owners cannot.
Street tree maintenance plan along boulevards – North Main / East Main
ITEMS FROM COMMISSIONERS
Liaison Reports
Aesthetics Advisory
Committee: Commissioner Rinaldi – Committee didn’t feel like the most recent Oregon Department of Transportation bridge design proposal met the mark. The commission didn’t like the cobblestone
stamp, or the ‘coats of arms Greek columns, medallions, lighting (footpath lighting/ traffic safety lighting), etc. on the bridge. They wanted to keep the visual impacts of the bridge
to a minimum –focus on natural landscape not bridge. Some of the ideas such as using retaining walls which followed the natural contours making them less visible and using low key concrete
treatments would be more visually pleasing.
State Heritage Tree meeting: Commissioner Townsend going to the May 2 meeting.
Old Business:
Distinctive Tree List – Commissioner Jones
working on list and Commissioner Townsend is also interested.
Recommended Street Tree Guide
The last meeting reviewing the Recommended Street Tree Guide was held on February 9, 2009.
The meeting was attended by Steve Siewert, Commissioners Jones and Rinaldi. The group thought it would be informative to add a BioSwale Trees / Riparian Tree section to the Recommended
Street Tree guide since bioswale parkrows are becoming more common as a method to deal with stormwater generation in new developments.
Amy will be taking the information gathered at
that meeting compiling it and then circulating the proposed revisions to those that didn’t participate and the commissioner. Another meeting will be necessary after that review period
to finalize the modifications before they go to the printer.
New Items:
Earth Day Events / Information
Sign up sheet in the April packet
Great Oregon Tree Plant – 150 Trees for
Oregon’s Sesquicentennial
Use planting as a ‘planting seminar’ Steve Siewert would like to assist
Tree Storytelling
What part of a tree is that? Grab box (for Children’s learning event)
Current
Balance - $ 123.32 – 35 approved for the Earth Day contribution.
ADJOURNMENT - Commissioner Rinaldi adjourned the meeting at 8:00 PM.
Respectfully submitted by Amy Anderson, Assistant Planner