Urban Forestry Commission

Urban Forestry Commission Meeting Minutes Wednesday, September 16, 2020 ❖ 7:30 - 9:30 p.m. Virtual Meeting: NOTICE: This virtual meeting of the Urban Forestry Commission was held pursuant to and in compliance with the Virginia Freedom of Information Act, Section 2.2-3708.2 and state and local legislation adopted to allow for continued government operation during the COVID-19 declared emergency. All participating members of the Urban Forestry Commission were present at this meeting through electronic means. All members of the public may view this video of this meeting on the City’s website at www.fallschurchva.gov/UFC Attendees UFC members: Dennis Szymanski, David DeCoste, David Braun, Amy Crumpton UFC City Staff Liaisons: Charles Prince City Council Liaison: Ross Litkenhous UFC Student Representative: Dylan Petrillo City Staff: Members of the Public: Kate Reich, Simone Pass Tucker Meeting Minutes and Supporting Documents (linked) 1. Approval of August Urban Forestry Commission Meeting Minutes - approved 2. Public Comments - 3. Staff Updates/ Informational Items a. Tree Keeper Inventory Update - Charles provided background information on the new tree inventory program for the City of Falls Church. It is a free tracking software that can catalog each tree in the city. It will allow for easier recording and reporting. Our existing data has been imported into this program, but it still needs updating. Volunteers will be needed in Spring 2021 to help update the information. Phase one will target city owned trees, but could expand to residential trees. It was noted that volunteers could identify optimal planting sites for new trees. 4. Current Business a. VPIS (Village Preservation Improvement Society) and NTP (Neighborhood Tree Program). Due to COVID-19 there will not be a volunteer tree planting initiative in  the Fall 2020. However, VPIS is eager to support (both financially and with volunteers) any upcoming tree planting efforts. The first opportunity may be this Fall as the city will work with the contractor, Terra to get approximately 30 trees planted on either public or private property. If the project with Terra doesn’t happen this Fall, then the VPIS funds could be applied in the Spring of 2021. b. Amy Crumpton asked Charles questions regarding how he would like to receive citizen requests and regarding signage. Charles stated that VPIS should continue to encourage citizens to send their requests and sign ups to him. He went on to say that a signage update should be considered by VPIS to promote the newly sponsored and planted trees. c. Urban Forestry Management Plan - some reformatting and updates were made. Amy Crumpton will send the revisions to David DeCoste to consolidate and update in the Google Drive. d. City Code Update Discussion - provide the goals / reasons why the UFC is recommending changes now. This document will provide clarity on confusing and inconsistent nomenclature. The revised codes could assist the UFC (and City Council) in meeting canopy coverage goals. Clarity will also help residents understand why and how they can receive stormwater credits. The question was also raised if our current code is in violation of state laws? We will need to have the city attorney review the code proposals. Council Member Litkenhous commented that having code changes to help address stormwater management would be well received by several city council members. The question he posed to the UFC is how can we incentivize residents to maintain and protect mature trees that help solve the stormwater issues? e. Council Member Litkenhous asked for an update on the status of the city arborist and the UFC working with the schools regarding tree maintenance on campuses. Charles stated that he hasn’t yet spoken to the school facilities team but that he will be following up with them. f. Dennis Syzmanski asked Charles for an update regarding the leaf scorch issues. Charles stated that due to budget constraints it’s been put on hold for now, but due to the mild summer it may not be as big of an issue as it was last year. g. Dennis asked about the Broad and Washington Project. Charles stated it is being delayed until October. The expectation is that each board and commission will have an opportunity to discuss it at their next scheduled meetings. 5. Future Business a. Switching to Microsoft Teams as a Meeting Platform 6. Adjourn Urban Forestry Commission Staff liaison: Charles Prince: 571-238-6306, arborist@fallschurchva.gov.