RANT: SDOT Tree Program

[CM]

Yes, I have contacted SDOT about this and have an email exchange ongoing.

Do you have white flags on your parking strips for free trees from SDOT? I’m not in any way against more trees, but could they have done less research possibly before spending our money?

None of the species available to choose are native. Some are toxic. Most are messy. Every single choice will grow a minimum of 35′ tall.

So Seattle City Light (SCL) requires that plantings under power/phone/cable lines grow no more than 20′. Apparently nobody at SDOT got that memo, even though it’s clearly spelled out on SCL’s website. SDOT will provide tree maintenance for two years after planting, after which time, pruning (which will probably kill the trees anyway) will be the responsibility of the homeowner.

Could we please get a little bit of reason going on here? The majority of the SDOT proposed locations in my ‘hood (top of Gatewood) are directly under powerlines.

No mention at all in the provided literature that homeowners can opt out of this program either.

Who thinks this stuff up?

Argh! Their email responses to me to date have made me out to be the bad guy for hating trees. This is so Frustrating!

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[JanS]

have you run this by Seattle City Light? Maybe they’d have better luck w/ SDOT…

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[JoB]

not to worry.. when those trees grow above the power lines.. the Seattle city light will send out tree toppers to top them.. then they will rot so when they come around to work on your sewer or install water containment systems they can condemn them…

the city just cut down the two trees out front that they ruined years before i moved in…

i get a ditch… and new trees.. or so they say

with any luck i won’t live here when those need to be cut down

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[blbl]

So you’re complaining that the city is giving you free power line appropriate trees, planting them and guaranteeing maintenance for two years? Wow.

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[JanS]

blbl…reread the 1st post. What the OP said is that none of the trees offered are powerline friendly. They will grow higher than Seattle City Light says they allow.

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[wakeflood]

I’d be tempted to get your ducks in a row and spell out the communications and lack of response in an email to every City Councilperson AND Diane Sigumura (sp?) Director of DPD – on top of the SCL communications mentioned above. (Emails avail online.)

Why DPD? They certainly don’t have direct jurisdiction over this specific issue but they have peripheral connection since they hold sway over LOTS of issues relating to rules, look & feel of the urbanscape, etc.

Sometimes it takes a little overreach to rise above the din.

And feel free to use the “many others in my community” when you do write. You can tell from this thread that a lot of us are wondering what is going on with this.

Just a thought.

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[anonyme]

I’m in the biz (former arborist) and the OP is absolutely correct. This scenario has been repeated all over the City. There was a recent news report about large street trees, planted only 20-30 years ago, being cut to the ground in another neighborhood up north. If trees are properly selected in the first place, they should NEVER need removal unless diseased or severely damaged.

An arborist I know confided to me a few years back that Asplundh, the City’s contracted arborist, has deliberately planted these inappropriate species as a kind of “job security”, knowing full well that they will require high maintenance and eventual removal. Several of the species on the ‘recommended’ street trees list are problematic, including Japanese Snowbell, which sheds large amounts of debris that is not only messy but can be dangerous to walk on.

Nor do I think it fair that homeowners, who have no choice in the matter, will eventually have to bear responsibility for maintenance. Trees require proper pruning, and that involves specialized training and skills that most homeowners just don’t have.

I’m all for trees – the more the better – but this is yet another stupid, ill-considered move by the City of Seattle.

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[wsn00b]

@CM:

I’m in Gatewood too. I was able to opt out. I provided a rather detailed description (with $$ receipts) to their arborist of work we had already done and had planned for our (I’d say) manicured planting strip. After a few emails where I convinced them that we’d be taking care of the planting strip at a level beyond what they can promise i.e not a ignored weed patch with 2 trees, they graciously let me opt out.

One easy way to avoid getting their trees planted is to plant your own bushes,etc in advance.

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[blbl]

I guess I don’t understand. The SDOT website has lists for large, medium, and small trees. Are they planting large trees directly under high voltage lines? Seems to conflict with their own policy: “Choose only small scale trees when planting underneath power lines.” Those on the small list are totally appropriate for under powerlines. Of course they’re non-native, the only native tree that would fit is vine maple.

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[wsn00b]

Wait a second. The (Gatewood) tree planting program late last year was called “Urban Tree Replacement Program” . The arborist I spoke to was from Seattle City Light and was listed in the city flyer about the program. The trees they offered (2 types) were supposed to not exceed 25 feet as they were being planted under the power lines. I opted out from that program with SCL’s blessing.

I have no idea if this a new separate SDOT run program or if this are the same thing.

Either way, if you don’t want their trees, goto Home Depot, buy 2 small native bushes and plant them. They avoid strips that are planted/cared for.

While I opted out, I’m happy with this program overall because a huge chunk of these selected parking strips are ignored weed farms.

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[CM]

Thanks for the replies.

I have contacted SCL vegetation management, but have yet to hear back.

Don’t get me wrong, if they offered appropriate species, I would be 100% behind this and would welcome the new trees.

This appears to be part of the “Bridging the Gap” program, but the literature is vague. They only offer 4 options, with the caveat that “If we don’t hear from you, SDOT will select a tree best suited for each location.”

The species available are: Espresso Kentucky Coffee Tree (50′), Millstone Japanese Pagoda tree (45′), White Shield Osage Orange (35′), and Hophornbeam (40′). No other options are listed.

To the best of my limited knowledge, pruning any of those species to 20′ max, per SCL requirements, would kill them. Given their growth rates, that pruning will be the homeowners’ responsibility which will either go undone or be expensive.

I’m just frustrated at what appears to be a very misguided effort that will end up costing the homeowners and the taxpayers wasted money.

Maybe some nice Camellias or Rhodys or flowering Cherries?

(Oh, I forgot to add. They are proposing adding these trees to some strips that are already planted and manicured, not just the empty/neglected ones.)

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[nwgardening]

I thought one of the reasons we have a City Arborist is to see that we have appropriate trees for certain conditions. Here’s a link to the page listing the names of the arborists who are in that department. http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/arborist.htm What does Nolan Rundquist, listed as the city arborist, have to say about these choices? They sound completely wrong to me.

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[CM]

I’m still waiting to hear back from Mr Rundquist.

Shoot, if I could stop this waste, I’d buy appropriate trees for the whole block if my neighbors wanted them and plant them myself. But I have the impression that SDOT doesn’t really care.

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[CM]

Update: Mr. Rundquist from SCL contacted me today with much more useful information. Essentially, the locations under power lines were to receive tree choices of much smaller varieties. Perhaps it was just a localized anomaly that the neighbors near me all received the large tree flyers. Hopefully this will be rectified by planting time.

He also explained that the SCL requirement is 25′ if I remember correctly and that the program will provide periodic pruning throughout the life of the tree. They also only consider the top level lines, not distribution, cable or phone lines.

So, a public thank you to Mr. Rundquist, arborist at SCL for providing much needed, correct information. I also apologize to him for aggressively questioning the program, I could not get the information I wanted until he replied.

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[kayo]

We got free street trees a while back and I swear they mixed up the trees that were supposed to be planted under the power lines with the trees that were on the other side of the street and not under lines. The trees I see across from my house (no power lines) are all small and slow growing. The trees under the power lines are all larger faster growing species. I don’t know if it was intentional or a screw up, but it will eventually become a problem. As an aside, last summer the large ornamental plum in front of our house (not part of the street tree planting), was decimated on two separate visits by a crew prepping to install a new power pole. I asked/begged them to just cut the tree all the way down after they were done with it because it looked horrible and they essentially cut the tree in half, leaving the half that leans over the street in a way that seems unsafe. I was told I had to buy a permit to have the tree completely removed because it is a “city owned” tree. (I also got a wink and a nod from the SCL crew and was told to just take a chainsaw to it myself after a big windstorm.). I would happily plant an APPROPRIATE lovely tree in the place of our basically destroyed tree, but in order to do that I have to jump through a bunch of hoops and spend a bunch of money that is a hardship for my family. Apparently, the crew who cut it in half did not need to do the same. Makes me cringe every time I pull up at my house and see the sorry state of this tree. Sigh….I love trees, but I question the decisions being made by those who are in charge of street trees after the experiences we’ve had.

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