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HomeMy WebLinkAbout2011-08-11-TREE-minTown of Lexington Lexington Tree Committee Minutes August 11, 2011 A meeting of the Lexington Tree Committee was held on August 11, 2011, 7:30-9:30 a.m. at the Samuel Hadley Public Services Building, Room 125. A quorum of six was present. Members Present: Christopher Filadoro (Public Grounds Superintendent), John Frey (Chairman), Jewel Kuljian, Karen Longeteig, Gerry Paul, David Pinsonneault (Manager of Operations), Anne Senning, Nell Walker Members Absent: Deborah Mauger (Selectman Liaison), James Wood The meeting acted on the following items: 1. Anne Senning was appointed as scribe, and the minutes of July 20, 2011 were approved as corrected. 2a. Tree Warden David Pinsonneault 's report: There has been the following Tree removal applications and tree activity since 10 /1 /01: Total calls: 680 Total closed: 767 Total to plant: 2310 Total planted: 1722 Total to remove: 954 Total removed: 831 Since 08/04/08, a total 3509" inches in permitted diameter were removed and a total $35,090 in fees were collected. b. Percy Rd: Dave Pinsonneault and Chris Filadoro resolved the issue of hazard trees at the site. The replanting plan will include a mixture of hardwoods and conifers. The agreement has been finalized. c. Fall Tree Planting Plan: Part I: Setback Trees; Twenty (20) trees will be planted by town staff under the setback program this fall. Jewel has interviewed 18 of the 20 recipients to date, produced location maps, watering letters, signed contracts and will designate trees in the nursery in the near future. Part II: Street Trees: Forty -five (45) Street Trees will be planted out by contract tree services. Anne Senning has 85 % of the virtual nursery constructed as per Judy Seppala's (IT Department) instructions and 15 of the 60 required planting maps. d. Seasonal Positions: Dave Pinsonneault and Chris Filadoro intend to request the addition of two full time seasonal positions for summer 2012. One position would work on tree maintenance with a focus on watering and in the Tree Nursery. The second position would work on the tree inventory 3. Marrett Rd /Lincoln St Traffic Island: The complications of the re- design of this area were discussed. It was decided that any information should be referred to either Dave Pinsonneault or Chris Filadoro as both the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and the Town of Lexington are involved in the re- design of this area. 4. Commemorative Tree near Sacred Heart: The East Lexington Community Association might like to consider for a Commemorative tree for Eugene Beauchemin, a past president. The Red maple to the left of the bench near Sacred Heart Church parish hall on Massachusetts Avenue is the preferred tree. John Frey will look into this matter. 5. Setback Program: Jewel Kulj ian presented the components of the Setback Tree Program master file: I. a master list of all recipients, II. On each recipient 1. A map of their home showing the location and species of the tree or trees in relation to the house and other features and rights of way 2. A signed contract 3. A copy of the best practices watering letter. 4. A notation of the Tree Nursery address for the Setback Tree 6. " Treegator Bags ": Chris Filadoro explored the history of the Town's use of Treegator watering bags on new trees. The plan is to have a trial of a small number, which will be monitored and evaluated. 7. Watering List of Trees being watered during the summer. Chris Filadoro will provide a list of these street trees. Anne Senning was not in a position to do this as was stated in July's Tree Committee meeting. 8. Tree Inventory with Eagle Scouts: Anne Senning presented a proposal that had been discussed with Dave Pinsonneault and Judy Seppala of the IT Department to work with the Eagle Scouts on the weekends this fall doing Tree Inventory with GPS in Hastings Park, Monroe Cemetery, Robbins Cemetery and Tower Park. It will require Tree Committee Members to work along side teams of Scouts in a training capacity. 9. Virtual Tree Nursery: Anne Senning showed the Virtual Tree Nursery and described the process of moving the `virtual trees' from their original locations, which had been done by estimation to the locations that were found by GPS Judy Seppala and Dorinda Goodman of IT Department. 10. Web Site: Karen Longeteig has updated the first page. Other updates include the Setback agreement. Members are to look over the Web Site and update relevant sections. 11. Commemorative Tree Brochures: Jane Beswick and Karen Longeteig presented the Commemorative Tree brochure, which need to have stickers placed on it to reflect Chris Filadoro's new position, and the new DPW address. Jane will take care of getting this done. 12. Tree Nursery Work Dates: The committee set the following dates to work in the Tree Nursery: Thursday 8/18/2011 4 p.m., Tuesday 8/23/2011 8 a.m., and Thursday 8/25/2011 8 a.m. 13. William Pressley Assoc Designs: William Pressley Assoc Designs has presented several designs for Massachusetts Avenue in the Center to the Selectman. These will be reviewed at a later date. There was no remote participation. The meeting was not recorded. Respectfully submitted, Anne Senning, Scribe Next regular meeting: September 8th, 2011, 7:30 a.m. at Samuel Hadley Public Services Building, Room 125