Tree Advisory Board Meeting — 2026-01-16

Detailed briefing

Tree Advisory Board — January 16, 2026 ATTENDEES: Board members Dana, Molly, Carol, Kathy and Bob were present. Henry reported that he would be absent because of exams. • Dana was elected chair and Molly was elected vice chair by voice vote. The transcript does not provide a numerical vote tally. Carol had indicated that she preferred not to serve as chair because of other commitments. • The board reviewed its draft management plan for trees and vegetation on city property. Requested changes include correcting the Bluff Stability Committee’s formation date, consistently using “city property,” updating the “Right Tree, Right Place” reference to the May 2025 version, and retaining “trees and vegetation” in the plan’s title. • Members also requested language allowing urgent attention to dead, dangerous or unhealthy trees even when they are outside the proposed three-year inspection rotation. The draft is also expected to address the previously discussed 20% cap on any one tree species and require a watering bag and assigned watering responsibility during a new tree’s first two years. • By consensus, the board tabled the management plan until a new city manager is in place. Members supported eventually holding a public-input session before the plan is presented to City Council, but no hearing date was established. • The board set May 23 for the 2026 Arbor Day event, the same day as the farmers market. Event hours, a theme and the species of seedlings to distribute remain undecided and will return for discussion. • A State Street resident asked for a coordinated streetscape and tree-canopy plan rather than isolated plantings. The board said State Street was already on its radar and agreed to discuss street-tree priorities more specifically in February. Molly volunteered to write the next tree-canopy article about winter pruning, planning and post-ice-storm tree care. Worth watching: 1. Staff could not locate the November meeting minutes. A brief version is to be reconstructed using Victor’s summary and the meeting’s YouTube video for possible approval at the next meeting. 2. Members discovered conflicting versions of the board bylaws. Review was postponed until the current version can be identified. 3. The management plan still needs revisions, public review and eventual council consideration; no completion date was set. Upcoming: February discussion is expected to cover bylaws, the updated project matrix, State Street and other street-tree priorities, and further Arbor Day planning. Why it matters: The board is setting rules and priorities that will shape how Harbor Springs plants, waters, maintains and replaces trees on city property.

No open public follow-ups are linked to this meeting yet.