HomeMy WebLinkAbout2014-03-13-TREE-min
Lexington Tree Committee
Town of Lexington, Massachusetts
201 Bedford Street, Samuel Hadley Public Services Building, Room 125
Minutes, Meeting of March13, 2014
Attendees: John Frey (Chairman), Jewel Kuljian, Gerry Paul, Anne Senning, Jim Wood.
Absent:, Karen Longeteig, Nell Walker, Deb Mauger (Selectman’s liaison) Chris Filadoro,
(Superintendant of Public Grounds). Gerry Paul took his turn as scribe.
1. Minutes of the February 13, 2014 meeting were approved as amended.
2. Tree removal activity – postponed.
3. Town Tree Inventory plan – Anne will follow up with Chris on the status of hiring interns.
4. Spring Tree planting – the plan is to order 10 each of: Tulip trees, Sweet Bay Magnolia and
Redbud. In addition thanks to the hard work of Anne Senning, Nell Walker and John Frey, 35
trees in the nursery have been identified as suitable for spring planting.
5. List/mapping of trees planted last fall – Anne will follow up with Chris to get the list.
6. Norway maples as protected trees – Matt Foti suggested that Norway Maples only be
protected under the bylaw if they were intentionally planted as opposed to “volunteers” which
grew from accidentally sown seeds. Discussion ensued and the Committee indicated it would
consider this further at a future meeting.
7. We invited Dave Cannon (Assistant Town Engineer) to discuss the status of the Concord
Ave sidewalk and the removal of trees. He indicated that his work was just beginning and there
is a question of whether the sidewalk will be installed this summer or next. He is currently in the
process of contracting with a certified arborist to assess the condition of trees which may be
impacted. He agreed to let us know when an arborist has been chosen.
Dave agreed with our strong recommendation that a “meandering sidewalk” should be
considered. We also asked that other possibilities be considered to save trees including the
width of the roadway and bump outs.
8. We asked Matt Foti if he could contact Paul Mazerall, a previous Lexington Tree Warden
and invite him to a future Tree Committee meeting. We’d like to hear about Paul’s experience
with set-back planting and other issues. Matt agreed to contact Paul.
9. John explained that Lorrie Hall from Duxbury contacted him for information about our Tree
Bylaw and he answered her questions.
10. For Arbor Day, we recommend planting two trees at Buckman Tavern: a Swamp White Oak
and a Sugar Maple. If the Swamp White Oak is not available we recommend planting a Tulip
Tree in its stead.
11. Gerry updated the committee on the issue of tree removal in order to install solar panels.
He explained that when one factors in the cooling power of trees, the tradeoff of installing solar
panels and not removing trees which block the sun from hitting the solar panels is somewhat of
a wash. This cooling effect is usually not taken into account in the literature provided by the
solar industry. Gerry reported that at the presentation of the solar initiatives in Town at the
League of Women Voters First Friday meeting (March 7) the speakers exhibited sensitivity to
the issue of removing trees. Also John indicated that the response by Astrum Solar to his initial
inquiry about installing solar panels on his house or barn was that it was not recommended
because of the mature trees on his property.
12. We discussed the need for better protection against damage by sidewalk plowing of trees in
the Center (possibly wrapping with wood slats).
Next regular meeting: April 10, 7:30 a.m. at DPW