Committee debates enforcement role for corridor trees after Walgreens example

Committee members debated whether the inventory and committee duties should extend to trees on private property along main transportation corridors. Staff noted that to date the inventory covers city-maintained property only and that private park strips are usually the responsibility of adjacent property owners.

Members pressed enforcement questions. A committee member said the Walgreens property took months to address: "And the Walgreens, it took, what, 6 months to even contact the right person in Illinois to deal with it." Staff clarified enforcement is complaint-based and handled by the city’s code enforcement officer, who covers many responsibilities and therefore cannot proactively check all corridors. Members recommended asking city council to define whether enforcement/prioritization of corridor trees should be a higher priority for the city.