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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2020-09-10-TREE-min Lexington Tree Committee Meeting Minutes September 10, 2020 7:30AM 1. Jim Wood was appointed as scribe and the minutes of August 13, 2020 were approved. The meeting was conducted via Zoom. Meeting Attendees -Tree Committee: Gerry Paul (Chair), Gloria Bloom, Pat Moyer,Jim Wood, Mark Connor, Nancy Sofen; Martha Kvaal (Tree Committee Candidate), Mark Sandeen (Select Board liaison); David Pinsonneault (Department of Public Works Director), Chris Filadoro (Tree Warden & Superintendent of Public Grounds), Sustainable Lexington: Marcia Gens, Richard Reibstein. Tree Warden Updates (items 2 thru 6) 2. Fall 2020 Planting Plans - Planting of 70 trees is planned for this fall. Two bid packages are in preparation, one is for the purchase of 70 trees and the second is for the labor to plant the Town provided trees. Both bid packages should be released close to the end of September. 3. Tree Inventory Status -A bid package to complete the Tree Inventory is planned for release by the end of September. The inventory of street trees is not expected to be complete until the summer of 2021. Additional discussion followed regarding the benefits of putting Precinct 7 thru 9 tree inventory on line resulting in the following motion. "The Tree Committee requests that the complete-to-date Tree Health Assessment (Tree Inventory) be made available now on-line for access by the Public." Motion passed 5-0. Dave Pinsonneault supported this and said he would provide, in the next week, a date when on-line access would be available. 4. Chris Filadoro said that the $72K has been received for the removal of solar canopies from facilities and is in the Tree Fund. 5. Planting of 497 Concord Ave mitigation trees. A total of$ 16,800 was received and Chris F. said it costs $500 -$700 to plant a tree. So we will plan on planting about 30 mitigation trees. 6. Status of the 5 Fulton Road, Chapter 87 Situation. The tree in question is a multi-trunk white pine. Dave Pinsonneault opened the discussion by saying it was a hazard tree under Chapter 87. In addition, he stated that both Chris Filadoro (Tree Warden) and Joel Custance (Town Arborist with 30 years experience) had examined the tree and found it to be a hazard.. Chris F. said he had also done a video of the decay. The question came up regarding documentation when a tree is designated a hazard and the reply was for internal assessments documentation is not necessary. Gerry Paul said the neighbors had David Cathcart, arborist, conduct an evaluation (Gerry noted he had a copy of this report and would distribute it) who disagreed that it was a hazard. Dave Pinsonneault disagreed with his assessment and said that Cathcart said it was low risk not no risk. Mark Connor asked what the definition of"hazardous" is. Dave P. said it was a "defective tree with a target". A target being something of value that would be potentially destroyed or damaged. Tree Committee Motion: Re 5 Fulton Rd 60' Pine Tree "To date the Tree Committee has not seen sufficient evidence to support the removal of the tree. The Tree Committee recommends a short term stay of the removal of the tree until there is evidence to support such action". Motion passed 4-1. Dave Pinsonneault agreed with obtaining more information. However, he stated that there is no appeal with a hazard tree. In addition he did not want to see this situation go into the fall. Mark Sandeen asked what the mitigation plan was if the tree did come down. Chris Filadoro said the Town does not follow the Tree Bylaw, but his plan was to work with the neighbors. Sandeen recommended stump removal/grinding, and offset tree planting 4 to 5 feet from spot 7. Tree Canopy Assessment. Dave Pinsonneault noted that our application for a grant was not accepted. After discussion, we developed the following motion: "The Tree Committee approves moving forward with conducting a Tree Canopy Analysis using available funds." Motion passed 5-0 8. Tree Management Manual-After discussion, the Tree Committee voted on the following motion. "The Tree Committee approves the 4t" Edition of the Lexington Tree Management Manual. The Tree Committee recommends that both the Manual and Tree Committee Recommendations for Tree Planting be approved by the Select Board." Motion passed 5-0. 9. Marcia and Rick provided an update on the Oct.6 "Stand with Lexington's Trees" event. Ideas for publicizing the event were discussed. 10. General Comments 10.1 Mark Sandeen commented that Town Counsel said it was not clear if the full appraised value could be recovered by the Town if the Select Board approves the removal of a Town tree. He noted that Town Counsel implied that this could be remedied with a bylaw change. The question was raised regarding what was the status of or actions being taken for the setback trees and the interior trees at 7 Fulton. 10.2 On the topic of Setback planting, Mark Connor asked if there was a way to control the trees after planting. Gerry Paul noted this was one of our most successful programs, and the trees do better away from the edge of the street, however, after the planting (free) the Town has no further responsibility or control . 10.3 Mark Sandeen asked if there were ways to keep owners from cutting trees down anywhere on their lot. Also, he suggested that mitigation fees be pegged to inflation. The Tree Committee meeting was concluded at approximately 9:30AM Next regular meeting: October 8, 2020 @ 7:30AM at DPW, 201 Bedford St. or online via Zoom. Respectfully Submitted James C. Wood,Jr.