Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Community Planning topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Commission coordinates replacements, Arbor Day window and local maintenance after summer events
Summary
With no quorum on July 15, the Athens Shade Tree Commission discussed replacement plantings with Menards, a mayor-backed proposal for roughly 100 West Side trees (commission to take a portion), stump-grinding policy for Euclid removals, an unauthorized limb cut during a festival, and a pending appointment for Chris Hedges.
At a July 15 meeting that lacked a quorum, the Athens Shade Tree Commission discussed logistics for multiple planting and maintenance items, including a proposed mayoral effort to add roughly 100 trees on the West Side bike path and replacement plantings coordinated with Menards.
Chair said the mayor’s proposal would help fill an open space on the West Side Park bike path but that the commission expected to take a subset of the roughly 75 trees suggested for that stretch. The chair proposed scheduling an Arbor Day-style planting weekend after Halloween and tentatively set the date for Saturday, Nov. 7, subject to parts department availability to provide heavy lifting and auguring.
Why it matters: the effort would add substantial canopy along the bike path and could be scheduled to coincide with replacements elsewhere to reduce mobilization costs. Commissioners emphasized coordinating delivery, staking and site prep so multiple plantings could be completed in a single weekend.
Other business: the commission reviewed replacement plantings and Menards’ willingness to deliver stock; Tom urged arranging long lead procurement timelines and said purchasing by November would satisfy related grant conditions. On right-of-way removals, the commission approved removal of a mostly dead silver maple at 17 Euclid and discussed a service-safety directive to stump-grind right-of-way removals so new trees can be replanted.
The chair described an unauthorized limb cut at the Boogie on the Bridle event on Court Street; the chair said organizers had cut a limb when staff were unavailable and that Andrew Cheeky was “in talks” with organizers about follow-up pruning and remediation.
The commission also reviewed a request from East Elementary for a tree from the tree bank (suggested magnolia or redbud) and said it will coordinate delivery. The chair said Chris Hedges, a local woodworker, has applied to join the commission and that the mayor is expected to approve a nomination in August before council confirmation.
What’s next: no votes were taken because the meeting lacked a quorum. Commissioners agreed to continue coordinating procurement and scheduling for fall plantings and to confirm the new member after the mayor and council process.
