Urban Forestry Commission

Tree Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, April 17, 2019 v 7:30 - 9:30 pm George Mason High School Library Present: Dennis Szymanski, Barbara Tesner, John Tesner, Kate Reich, Tim Stevens 1. Approval of March 20 Minutes: The Tree Commission (TC) approved the minutes for the March 20, 2019 meeting. 2. Public Comments: None 3. Staff Updates/ Informational Items  Bacterial Leaf Scorch of red oaks – The City will be testing the 23 “high value” Red and Black oaks to ensure that leaf scorch is afflicting these trees. Test results will be available late in 2019. If it is leaf scorch, treatment with antibiotics will commence in Spring 2020. Regardless, treatment with a growth regulator will commence this spring, as this treatment has no downside and provide only benefits.  Tree Commission code changes – name and structure – Kate is preparing explicit code textual changes for council review. All agree that the issue of a potential “Alternate member” on TC should not inhibit or delay the name change to “Urban Forestry Commission" 4. Current Business  Arbor Day – No changes from last month’s update. Event is still scheduled for Berman Park on April 27. Loblolly Pine seedlings (City of Falls Church 2019 Tree of the Year) are on order and will be available at the Arbor Day event.  Urban Forest Management Program – Draft Goals and Table of Contents Distributed to TC. Latest version as of this afternoon was provided hardcopy. Kate will email this update for review. TC members were asked to come prepared to discuss comments at the next meeting.  Tree canopy/green space goals – A tree canopy discussion with City Council was discussed. The TC considered questions to explore at this discussion including 1) What can be done with zoning that would encourage canopy? and 2) What can (or The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability call 703-248-5030. (TTY 711)  would need to) be done by State legislation? A meeting likely will not occur until after June 2019. New aerial photography has been purchased by the City. This new data includes the first Light Detection And Ranging (LIDAR) survey of Falls Church. LIDAR data allows for three-dimensional evaluation of canopy cover. This new GIS data is due in September 2019. The City’s GIS manager will be able to calculate new canopy after September 2019. Code Change (Canopy): Discussed the aspects and impacts of a residential code change that would consider 20% canopy in 20 years versus the current code which calls for to 20% in 10 years.  VPIS proposal - Neighborhood tree program major pillar. Important part. Difficult getting volunteers. Running out of City space. Ambitious goals. Transparency. Encourage VPIS to attend Tree Commission meeting for discussion and group dialogue. 5. Plan Reviews: none 6. Future Business  Possible tree conflicts with future 5G antenna installations  Urban Forest Management Plan  Future of green space associated with Special Exception projects  Code updates/modifications relating to urban forestry  Standard private maintenance agreements for streetscapes The TC meeting was adjourned at 9:24 p.m. Staff liaison: Kate Reich, 703-248-5183, kreich@fallschurchva.gov The City of Falls Church is committed to the letter and spirit of the Americans with Disabilities Act. To request a reasonable accommodation for any type of disability call 703-248-5030. (TTY 711)