UPDATE: Wondering about those half-cut trees along Admiral Way?

From the “you asked, so we asked” file: The case of the “Admiral Way tree massacre,” as it was described by Doug, who sent that photo. We’ve received numerous inquiries about the half-cut trees, which are on Seattle Parks-owned land on the slope over the downhill side of Admiral at 34th [map]. So we asked Parks, whose spokesperson Rachel Schulkin researched it with the department’s forestry staff and tells WSB:

Those trees were removed as they were either dead or declining and were posing unacceptable risk.

That project is not complete. Winter storms have interrupted a lot of our planned work, including this project. Our plan is to return in the next couple weeks to reduce most of the remaining tree stems to ground level. A few appropriately placed stems will be left as wildlife habitat. Performing this remaining work will not need traffic control like the previous work did.

Besides the site’s high visibility along Admiral Way, it also attracted notice given its proximity to the city-owned land where ~150 trees were illegally cut four years ago.

3:17 PM: Schulkin has just sent this update: “We had time today and finished this project. We lowered all the stems except a few that we left for wildlife habitat.”

28 Replies to "UPDATE: Wondering about those half-cut trees along Admiral Way?"

  • KJ January 8, 2020 (2:00 pm)

    Something is wrong, here! No responsible arborist would cut trees in this manner!

    • HS January 8, 2020 (3:04 pm)

      Per the article “trees were removed as they were either dead or declining and were posing unacceptable risk” …. work isn’t complete.

      • WSB January 8, 2020 (3:30 pm)

        But – per update I just added – Parks says it is now! Have not been by to verify, though.

      • P. January 8, 2020 (5:30 pm)

        Too bad they can’t trim the trees up higher on Admiral where the viewpoint is. Well, it used to be a viewpoint of the city…no longer especially in the summer. 

        • John January 8, 2020 (6:36 pm)

          What about the  Plant Amnesty bumper stickers, “The TREES are the View”?

  • Gregg Hersholt January 8, 2020 (2:18 pm)

    Makes me wonder about the status of the overgrown trees nearby at the top of the hill that are blocking the city view at Belvidere Park.  Wasn’t the city going to trim those and restore the view?

  • Yma January 8, 2020 (3:25 pm)

    Ok – the trees were dying. Neighbors- how do we get more local trees out there?

  • Christopher B Barnes January 8, 2020 (3:31 pm)

    On our way to a landscape of overgrown blackberry bushes and scotch broom.  Is there a plan or just let nature take it’s course?

  • Paula January 8, 2020 (3:37 pm)

    All of those trees along Admiral look the same. Are the others sick or dying? Alders have a short expected lifetime. 

  • DANIEL BILLEY January 8, 2020 (4:33 pm)

     That stretch of road leading up to the wonderful Admiral District is really unattractive and frankly embarrassing. Get a landscape architect in there who can recommend a plant palette that will be more reflective of the pocket of greenbelt it should be. Native Dogwoods and rhododendrons, Incense Cedars, Flowering Currant, Sword Ferns and the like would be a good start. 

    • Scott January 8, 2020 (5:14 pm)

      Those designers are long gone.  It’s over.  

      • Nw mama January 8, 2020 (8:09 pm)

        Scott- huh?  “Long gone”?

  • Scott January 8, 2020 (5:12 pm)

    Winter storms?

  • junctioneer January 8, 2020 (5:18 pm)

    There are probably answer to this, but especially now at an opportunity like this it’d be so neat to plant some firs and cedars.I keep thinking about Schmitz Park, and all the other green space we have that looks more like Admiral Way, and wondering if for future generations we can restore the vast amounts of sad green space back. I know there are efforts to do this in the city and in West Seattle. Probably time for me to look into them.

  • Mj January 8, 2020 (6:09 pm)

    An opportunity to replant with native durable plants and trees.  

  • MikeE January 8, 2020 (6:14 pm)

    Please don’t just complain.  Propose your ideas/projects to Seattle Parks & Recreation and donate.  Having donated to SP&R before, and voted for projects that I wanted in our neighborhood, the organization has done a lot of good, and wants constituent input to direct funds/effort.Some of the ideas here to restore and/or redesign the “wild” space off Admiral Way are great!  I’d love to see them become reality, esp. since I live at the top of Admiral Way and look at that same stretch of road often…  But, I can tell you that posting on WSB won’t get it that way.  Check out the Parks page (https://www.seattle.gov/parks) and help lead the way!

    • WSB January 8, 2020 (6:29 pm)

      Also: Get involved with neighborhood groups, which can interact with the city. The Admiral Neighborhood Association, for example, meets next Tuesday (see our calendar).

  • Eric January 8, 2020 (6:32 pm)

    Tracy, we noticed trees cut near Bonair and 52nd that just happen to be directly in front of some houses.  Was this cut done by parks?  It doesn’t seem like parks would do it considering all the volunteer work that has been done to restore the area directly above the cut. We thought that perhaps the homeowners paid for this to raise the value of their property because the cuts are just perfectly in front of 3 homes. Thanks for any information you could give us!

  • John January 8, 2020 (6:41 pm)

    Has anyone else noticed the severe tree removal on the city’s land half way up Bonair that happened recently?  This appears to be another clearly indicated, by view, case of who is doing the illegal clearing on city property.

    • WSB January 8, 2020 (8:33 pm)

      A reader asked about that and then told me he got a call directly back from the city even before I could put out an inquiry to Parks. He was told a nearby resident has an easement to top the trees. There is another parcel on Bonair I researched last year where the city did cutting much like this but I believe you’re referring to the other one.

      • KJ January 9, 2020 (8:02 am)

        This is not ‘tree topping’. Tree topping leaves a live tree to regrow and branch outward. These trees are cut too low and will die. Does Parks have an arborist monitoring these easements involving trees?

  • Joanne M Simpson January 8, 2020 (7:09 pm)

    Who cares what it looks like.  Better the trees are cut ugly than on the road or worse yet on you.  Stop whining and drink some wine.

  • 1000amys January 8, 2020 (8:11 pm)

    “tree stems?” As in, trunks?

  • John January 9, 2020 (9:57 am)

    nearby resident has an easement to top the trees”—Now that is a story worth digging into.  I wonder how many residents have such easements and I wonder how they are still valid and enforceable.  I would also hope that their would be a trail of documents and permits to cut the Bonair trees available to the public and fully disclosed.

Sorry, comment time is over.