Tree Board

Tree Board minutes 07/24/17 1 Morgantown Tree Board (MTB) Minutes, meeting of July 24, 2017 Present: MTB members Dan Brown, Dave Davis, Secretary Jon Weems, and Chair Dave Barnett, City Council representative Rachel Fetty, and City employees Marchetta Maupin and John Whitmore. D. Barnett opened the meeting at 4:31 PM and noted that a quorum was present. D. Brown moved and D. Davis seconded that the minutes of the June 28 meeting be approved as amended. The motion carried unanimously. J. Whitmore reviewed the process necessary for the updated tree list to become part of City code. First it needed to be approved by the Planning Commission (likely at a 6:30 meeting August 10), then passed through three readings at City Council meetings, perhaps in August, September, and October. He expressed a desire for MTB presence to show support and respond to possible technical questions. Others noticed that the revised tree list in J. Whitmore’s possession lacked reasons some trees were in the new “do not plant” section, reasons that appeared on MTB’s final version. D. Barnett said he would see that J. Whitmore obtained the final version for presentation to the Planning Commission. J. Whitmore noted that the Third St. planting plan called for 3 trees, including 2 ginkgoes under utility wires, and substitutions would be required for those 2 ginkgoes. Report from M. Maupin. M. Maupin said she had been acquiring trees for future use without using funds from the MTB budget. Small saplings for possible planting in the Deckers Creek area included 33 sugar maples, 15 sycamores, 11 red oaks, 22 redbuds, 2 white oaks, 3 ‘streetkeeper’ locusts, 5 ‘autumn gold’ ginkgoes, and a kousa dogwood, as well as 2 magnolias for planting in parks. She noted the sugar maples were not thriving, but most of the others looked good. She further reported acquiring larger stock from Raemelton Farms, most of them for possible planting on High St. These trees, with two- inch trunk diameters, included 5 ‘brandywine’ red maples, 5 Carpinus cultivars, 1 ‘tupelo tower’ blackgum, 4 ‘wildfire’ blackgums, 3 ‘regal prince’ oaks, 1 ‘legacy’ sugar maple, and 1 sourwood. In other matters, M. Maupin mentioned that most of the 2016 Arbor Day dogwoods looked good, that part of a silver maple at 7TH and McLane fell on a house during a storm, and that there was a backlog of trees, many of them ashes, slated for removal from Krepps Park and other City parks. Unfinished business 1. Tree database – Plan-It GEO. Acquisition of this software to track Morgantown’s trees was proceeding. City Manager Paul Brake had signed the purchase order. MTB needed to assemble records for the grant’s match. R. Fetty urged efforts to get citizens more involved with MTB’s work. It was noted that public involvement with pruning could be problematic, but that tasks such as tree problem reporting and hand pulling of grass and weeds around trunks would be highly beneficial. It was expected that public interest groups might be interested in helping citizens become involved with reporting tree  Tree Board minutes 07/24/17 2 problems using Plan-It GEO. 2. Demonstration City grant - High St. trees. M. Maupin reported that the two tree pits in the sidewalk in front of the Courthouse Square were to be eliminated. There was mention of possibly moving them to the fifth block, an area without trees. Removal of trees and curbs, and replacement with deeper pits, grates, and new trees, was well underway. 3. Recommended tree and shrub list. This matter had been addressed during the presentation by J. Whitmore. 4. Tree recommendation for Third St. streetscape. This matter had been addressed during the presentation by J. Whitmore. New business 1. Arbor Day 2017. MTB tentatively set October 21 as the date for Morgantown’s Arbor Day. D. Barnett noted that 2017 would be the 20th consecutive year for Morgantown to be designated a “Tree City USA.” Brainstorming centered around a more diverse planting than 2016’s dogwoods, and hopefully involving every neighborhood. It was believed there might be 20 neighborhoods in the City, and Krista Baker could supply a list of recognized neighborhoods. D. Davis suggested the WVU Horticulture Club he advises might be a source of volunteer labor for Arbor Day. M. Maupin suggested other WVU clubs might also participate. The hope was to plant “20 trees for 20 years” in 2017. Next meeting 4:30 Monday, August 28 in City Council chambers. Motion to adjourn made at 6:02 PM by D. Barnett, seconded by D. Brown. All in favor. Respectfully submitted, ______________________ Jon Weems, Secretary