Tree Board Meeting 6.19.2020

Detailed briefing

Tree Advisory Board Meeting — June 19, 2020 ATTENDEES: Dana Mulder, Sue Irish, CeCe Johnson (by phone), and Mark Gilbert. Jeff Granger was absent because of workload. • The board discussed pursuing a ReLeaf planting grant for 15-20 trees. The city contribution would be $2,000, matched by $1,500 from ReLeaf, with city in-kind work including hole digging, staging, volunteers and possibly mulch. ReLeaf would survey sites, help select species, supply and transport trees, and have a representative present on planting day. • Members generally supported splitting the trees between public and neighborhood locations. The discussion identified the green space between City Hall and Main Street for roughly half the trees and neighborhood planting north of Lake Street, between State and Ann streets, for the remainder. The project could occur in fall 2020 or spring 2021, depending on ReLeaf scheduling and COVID-related changes. • The board discussed care needs for new trees, including irrigation, gator bags, volunteer reminders and homeowner commitments to water trees. Members noted that site conditions vary and that too much water can also harm trees. • For donor recognition, the board agreed in discussion to create a matching plaque for “Friends of Harbor Springs Trees” donors giving $100 to less than $500. Donors of $500 or more would continue to be recognized on the existing tree-honoree plaque. Very large donations could be recognized individually through City Council action. Members also discussed pooling smaller gifts for future community planting days. • Sue Irish volunteered to improve the Tree Plan draft section on the value of trees. The board also supported sending draft Tree Board bylaws to the city attorney before taking them to City Council. • The board held a preliminary discussion of the moratorium on bluff vegetation-management requests. Public comments included a proposal to call the area “Bluff Park” and stop tree cutting, concerns about wet conditions and plant survival, and a request that Shea Park’s existing neighbor-arborist process be considered separately. Members debated broader, city-directed vegetation management versus the current request-based process, with views, erosion, vegetation health, utilities, cost and liability all raised. Worth watching: • Staff plans a public survey and policy-options presentation for City Council on bluff vegetation management. • The board will revisit bluff policy options at a future meeting after additional staff and arborist work. • ReLeaf grant timing depends on site information, City Council consideration and program scheduling. Upcoming: The next Tree Board meeting will include further discussion of bluff vegetation-management options. Why it matters: The board is weighing new tree-planting and donor tools while reconsidering how public bluff land should balance views, ecological conditions and public responsibility.

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