Three dedicated oak trees that were uprooted in front of Yardbirds will be replaced by County Public Works but the location and species of the trees are undecided, Zone 36 members and county representatives said this week.
Public Works will plant double the number of removed trees for a total of six, Supervisor Mary N. Piepho wrote in a letter to Dianne Tinnes, the former chairwoman of the Boulevard of Trees Project.
“I’m a tree hugger. I love the environment, too,” Piepho said, while discussing the issue with Zone 36 and R-7A members in April.
In February of this year, Public Works gave Yardbirds’ property manager permission to remove the trees, which had been dedicated to members of Alamo families as part of the project. The county then butted heads with former members of the Boulevard of Trees Project, a group that planted the oaks as part of an Alamo beautification effort.
“We are looking at planting places that aren’t going to buckle sidewalks or be under another tree,” said Senior Civil Engineer Eric Whan.
The new trees should be planted at the location where they were removed, said Alamo residents and members of the Boulevard of Trees Project. Without the oaks, the area in front of Yardbirds is not balanced aesthetically, residents said.
“It would be a substantial cost to do that. The department will have to pay to cut out sidewalk,” Whan said.
The Zone 36 committee will have the final say on where the trees will be planted, and funding for watering and maintenance will come out of the Zone 36 budget. The county will pay for the trees and the planting.
While it will likely be difficult to plant the trees at the exact location they were removed, Public Works is looking into planting in the area behind the sidewalk in front of Yardbirds.
Property manager Scott Kertz said he removed the oak trees as well as magnolia trees because the roots were knuckling. When tree roots push through the sidewalk it is a safety liability for the county, said Assistant Public Works Director Joe Yee.
Valerie Schooley of Zone 36 said the committee is looking into what Yardbirds will allow them to do. And Public Works is currently researching related right of way issues, Whan said.
“I’d like to see priority given to Danville Boulevard,” said Steve Mick, an alternate member of Zone 36.
Spots where other trees have died or been removed along Danville Boulevard may be the best options for planting, he said. It makes the most sense, considering the group’s goal was to plant 300 trees along Danville Boulevard, Zone 36 members said.
Along with right of way and interference with other plants, species of the trees and the possibility for disease are also factors in deciding location.
“We have to look at why the tree died in the first place,” Whan said.
Since the county is taking the responsibility of watering the trees, Public Works representatives said it would be ideal for all six trees to be in the same area. In this climate, watering must be done for three seasons after a tree is planted.
“We will want to monitor those to make sure they are watered throughout the summer,” said Lisa Carnahan of Public Works.
Tinnes said it might be best to wait until fall to plant the trees because then the weather provides the trees with the most natural watering.
“The winter rains give the new trees a good start,” she said.
