2008 CPC Rpt - Laserfiche WebLink

Browse Search

Project: Belfry Hill Tree Restoration CPA Category: Historic Preservation Amount Requested: $9,850 Amount Recommended: $9,850 CPC Vote: Approval (9 -0) Project Description: This project, proposed by the Lexington Tree Committee, will remove the Norway maple infestation located on the north and northwest side of Belfry Hill and replant the area with native tree species, indigenous to Belfry Hill. Norway maple, a native of Europe and western Asia, out competes native trees. It grows rapidly, resisting drought, pests and pollution. It creates dense shade and produces a great amount of seed, which disperses to form colonies of Norway maple saplings. Consequently, as of January 1, 2006, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts banned the importation of Norway maples in Massachusetts, imposed a ban on its propagation, and restricted its sales to existing Norway maple nursery stocks, which entered the state prior to January 1, 2006. The Lexington Tree Committee first learned of the infestation of Norway maples on Belfry Hill during its 2006 Tree Inventory and now seeks funding to curtail this problem and preserve native growth on Belfry Hill. Project Goals and Objectives: • Remove the invasive Norway maples that infest the north and northwestern sections of Belfry Hill. • Replant the area with native tree species, which are indigenous to Belfry Hill. • Stabilize the slopes and prevent erosion with native shrubs and seeded ground cover. • Restore the view between the Bell Tower and the Town Green and Buckman Tavern. • Provide care to maximize the success of the plantings. Project Benefit: Belfry Hill is an integral part of the Town's history, providing a repository for the restored Bell Tower and Bell, which is rung annually in the reenactment of the Battle of Lexington. The site is an important attraction to tourists who come to town to understand this history. This project falls under the Historic Preservation section of the Community Preservation Act and is congruent with town goals for Belfry Hill. Funding Request: This project requests $9,850 of CPA funds to hire a professional tree company to remove 21 large and 200 sapling Norway maples and to plant 30 native trees and additional erosion control plants, according to a landscape design provided by the Lexington Tree Committee. Of this amount, $7,850 will be used in fiscal year 2009 and the remaining $2,000 will be used in fiscal year 2010 for removal of Norway maple sprouts and maintaining the newly planted trees and bushes. All work performed will be under the management of the DPW.