Tree & Landscape Board

Approved: October 15, 2014 M&C Nagro Gardiner FINAL / Minutes of the Tree and Landscape Board City Hall, City of College Park September 17, 2014 Appointment Members Present Absent Expiration Brenda Alexander, Public Works Deputy Director Steven Beavers, Planning Representative 7/2013 Dennis Herschbach, Member 11/2014 John Krouse, Member 12/2014 John Lea-Cox, City Forester 2/2014 Mark Wimer, Chairperson CBE Liaison, Gemma Evans CBE Liaison, Janis Oppelt Chairperson Wimer called the meeting to order at 7:10 p.m. I. Approval of the Meeting Minutes Motion: The May 21 and July 16, 2014 Tree and Landscape Board meeting minutes were approved. (The June 18, 2014 TLB meeting was cancelled due to the permaculture tour.) Moved: Chairperson Wimer Second: Mr. Krouse Aye: Unanimous Nay: 0 Abstain: 0 II. Meeting Reminders Chairperson Wimer discussed the City Hall Meeting Protocol with” Important Reminders for Members of College Park’s Boards and Committees,” which was distributed to and reviewed by all members in attendance. Motion: The TLB acknowledges receipt of the City Hall Meeting Protocol, and the members have read and understand the terms. A copy of the document will be emailed to members not in attendance. Moved: Mr. Krouse Second: Chairperson Wimer Aye: Unanimous Nay: 0 Abstain: 0 III. New Board Membership Mr. Krouse suggested advertising for new members; Chairperson Wimer suggested advertising the various TLB projects to garner interest; John Lea-Cox suggested a student liaison. IV. New Chairperson 1  Mr. Krouse volunteered to serve as new Chairperson beginning in the October 2014 meeting. Chairperson Wimer will continue to stay involved with the TLB; the Committee members thanked him for his service. Motion: The TLB accepts the nomination of John Krouse to serve as the next Chair of the Tree and Landscape Board, effective October 2014. Moved: Dr. John Lea-Cox Second: Mr. Krouse Aye: Unanimous Nay: 0 Abstain: 0 V. Planning Department Mr. Beavers announced the permaculture planting scheduled for Saturday, October 11, at Greenbelt Road and Route 1 from 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.; plants have been ordered. October 4 is site prep day to get the planting beds ready; October 18 is the rain date. Volunteers are expected to participate, including Maryland University students. Mr. Beavers also announced that there will be a Rain Barrel Workshop at Davis Hall on Saturday, September 20, in which an 80-gallon rain barrel will be installed. Representatives from the Department of the Environment will give a presentation, and three 50-gallon rain barrels will be given away, courtesy of the Committee for a Better Environment (CBE). VI. Public Works  One landscape team member was promoted to Motor Equipment Operator; the position was filled earlier this week with a laborer who has prior experience with M-NCPPC.  Ms. Alexander had the revised plan for Hollywood Gateway Park; the meadow was removed so there is a new plant list.  The plan for the Knox Box area is moving ahead. Rossburg Drive is now closed between Knox and Hartwick; all of those units are now vacant.  Ms. Alexander is working on compiling the fall tree planting list, which is currently up to nearly 30 trees with 2 to 4 requests from residents.  Ms. Alexander met with a Pepco representative this morning. and they are planning to do some additional work on Edmonston Road to upgrade the transmission line. The pruning/ removal work will occur on the west side of the street; the transmission line is on the east side of the street. The trees are tall, and Pepco is concerned since several trees have already fallen and taken down the transmission lines on the other side of the street. VII. Airport Tree Trimming A letter was sent to the City Council from a resident in the Yarrow neighborhood whose property backs up to the airport. His concern was that when tree pruning was completed in that area earlier this year, he spoke to the workers regarding the fact that they may have been removing trees that were not on the property and were also just dropping trees and leaving the debris on the ground, which could contribute to a fire hazard. The letter also went to the interim Airport Manager, then to the supervisor for a reply. Ms. Alexander did not receive a reply and will check to see if the resident received a reply. 2  Motion: The Tree and Landscape Board requests the City Manager (directed by the City Council) to request the follow-up report of Park and Planning about the actions taken in response to our concerns about the tree work performed at the airport. Moved: Mr. Krouse Second: Dr. Lea-Cox Aye: Unanimous Nay: 0 Abstain: 0 VIII. Miscellaneous  Mr. Krouse suggested including appointment expiration dates on all meeting minutes; that information was supplied by Mr. Beavers.  Mr. Krouse suggested requesting that expired members (Mr. Herschbach and Chairperson Wimer) be reinstated; Chairperson Wimer will email the City Clerk.  Mr. Beavers notified the TLB that the Committee is invited to participate in the City’s tent during College Park Day on September 27. Chairperson Wimer suggested having brochures for distribution regarding the TLB, planting and pruning trees, etc.  Dr. Lea-Cox will be on sabbatical from March-August 2015. IX. Adjournment The TLB meeting adjourned at 8:44 p.m. The next TLB meeting is scheduled for October 15 at 7:00 p.m. in City Hall. Minutes prepared by Debra Pinkett, Contract Secretary for the City of College Park 3