Urban Forestry Tree Board (Meets as needed/quarterly)
Regular MeetingSuperior, WI · August 19, 2021
Minutes
URBAN FORESTRY TREE BOARD PROCEEDINGS
August 19, 2021
Room 204 | Government Center & Via Zoom
Members Present: Ruth Ludwig, Jane Anklam, Nick Nelson, Robert-Jan Quene, Richard
Kaufman (virtual)
Members absent: Meghan Gil-de-Lamadrid
Also present: Linda Cadotte, Russ Behlings, Jodi Saylor
Chair Ludwig called the meeting to order at 4:34 p.m.
1. Approve Meeting Minutes from July 15, 2021
MOTION by Anklam, second by Nelson and carried to approve the minutes from
the July 15, 2021 meeting.
2. Superior Municipal Forest Master Plan
a. Discuss Proposal and Interview
b. Recommendation on how to proceed
The Board discussed their thoughts on the Ayres interview and felt it would be
good to seek more proposals so they have something to compare. There are two
other companies that were anticipated would submit proposals but neither were
aware of the RFP. It is possible to reopen to allow for more submittals.
There was also discussion as to what the role of the consultant would be. They
would be tasked with taking all of the current plans, review them, get stakeholder
input on initial thoughts, get expertise input and then help to guide the process of
putting together a new plan that combines elements of the current plans and
outlines the plan for the next ten years.
If we were to seek more proposals, we could potentially conduct interviews at the
end of September which would not delay the process more than a month or two.
MOTION by Quene, second by Nelson and carried to reopen the RFP
process and try to be targeted on the outreach.
Cadotte will let the board know the timeline. With the Board’s consent, she will
schedule the interviews and let the Board know those dates and times and they
can attend as they are able. They will be recorded and shared with the Board if
they are unable to participate.
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3. Tree Planting Requests at Wisconsin Point – Input/Approve
Director Cadotte has received two requests to plant trees at Wisconsin Point. Both
requests are from descendants of family members with connections to Wisconsin Point.
The first request is to plant 30-50 cedar in the fall, and 30-50 more in the spring. They
submitted a map with some general areas and part of them cut through culturally sensitive
points where there are archeological sensitive components. The request was sent to
Deanna from the Reserve and Ryan Magana from the DNR as they are crossing over
DNR property as well. Magana said he would like to know what the overall strategy and
plan is with wanting to plant. Cadotte went back to the requestors with some questions
and a request to fill out our formal permit and they have not responded as of yet. They
want to plant their own trees.
The second request is someone wanting to plant a red maple through the Tribute Tree
Program. There are currently no red maples on Wisconsin Point and it is an overplanted
species in the City. On this request, Board members felt it would be ok to plant a tree but
should guide the requestor to a native species already on Wisconsin Point.
We have never had a large number of trees planted without our crew taking part in the
process. The board felt that if the first request were approved by all stakeholders and
there are representatives from each while the trees are being planted, it would be ok to
allow them to do the plantings. They would also need to provide a plan as to what the
plan is for maintenance and care of the plantings.
MOTION by Anklam, second by Quene and carried to allow for the Tribute Tree
planting program to include native species for this planting on Wisconsin Point, to
be developed with stakeholder approval in the specific location on Wisconsin Point.
Requests of this nature should be run through the Wisconsin Point Committee. The
person(s) wanting to plant significant amount of trees needs to provide a
maintenance plan and long term plan that does not conflict with the overall
Wisconsin Point restoration plan.
4. WI-DNR State Natural Area Strategy Plan – July 2021
a. Highlights and Next Steps
This plan has a lot of great information that will help guide the master plan.
Currently, we are not under a legal dedication. State Natural Areas are sometimes
owned by the state and sometimes by private partners. Partners can have a legal
dedication, ours is not - we have an MOU agreement. If you move to a
designation it has the highest level of conservation benefits. It puts it in a
conservation easement protection. One thing to consider, down the road would
there be a reason to shift to this? Even though we have protections already built
into our City ordinance, legal designation basically makes it impossible if
someone came forward with a really lucrative reason why to take it out of there.
The state would then override the City’s recommendation at that point. Example –
would be impossible to build a power line through the SNA.
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Certified SNA – SFI and SFC – most of County and State lands certified by these.
They do a physical audit and report to make sure standards are met and issue
corrective actions. Most of the time, those SNA that are certified, like organic
certification stamp and if we would ever harvest, this would increase the value of
the wood. Certified folks are onsite once a year to do the physical audit. Even if
we don’t ever harvest within the SNA, there is an added value brought by this
certification.
SNA Research and Collectors permit – any property in the SNA that is owned by
state requires a permit to accept the research or not. Cadotte frequently gets
requests for research in the Superior Municipal Forest and there has not been a set
approval process for this. Often times, she does not hear back on the research that
was completed. This may be something we modify and use for our own permit to
at least track it and have the benefit of reporting. We could ultimately accept the
research or not. We could put some guides based off state’s guide on it to get a
feel of what research has been done and what is lacking. The Reserve would be
perfect to get involved in this because they are often doing a lot of research out
there, but could also review what other research has been done. This could be
shared with other researchers also. Great way to compile all the data and know
what has been done and the results.
The plan talks about the importance of managing deer and hunting and
encourages hunting in SNAs. Hunters have expressed that they would like to
allow overnight deer stands. The DNR would support having the City match the
DNR guidelines. We do not limit the number of tags for deer right now, but the
County does.
Archeological, historical, or cultural data on the forest. We don’t really have a lot
of info on this. Cadotte asked Magana if it is a priority of the state to have surveys
done in SNAs. Do we want to look at doing this? Is it recommended? If we want
to implement some things, the SNA might give us a good place to start.
Invasive species management. The state plan talks about managing and how to
manage. Might be an opportunity to focus on a specific spot for the first few
years. We could then expand to outside the SNA as we get more of a handle on
treatment.
Natural Areas Association annual meeting is in Duluth this year later in
September/October. Magana is considering offering the Superior Municipal
Forest/SNA as part of their field trip but also suggested that it would be a good
meeting for Cadotte to attend. A lot of professionals that manage natural areas
throughout the country participate.
Printed copies of the State Natural Area Strategy Plan will be provided to those
board members that would like it. The plan can also be found at:
https://widnr.widen.net/s/28dhpklwcm/nh0401
MOTION by Quene, second by Nelson and carried to table the discussion of the
WI-DNR State Natural Area Strategy Plan until October meeting.
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5. Tribute Tree Brochure – Input/Approve
MOTION by Anklam, second by Quene and carried to approve the brochure with
the addition of “For further details, contact our department”.
We will revisit if plaque prices come back higher.
6. Director’s Report
We may need to consider meeting sooner than October to recommend a Consultant.
Hoping to move the October meeting to the 14th or to November.
Behlings we have quite a few trees still in the gravel beds, waiting for cooler temps
before they can be planted. The Crew is focusing on getting more familiar with new
software. They are using the software quite a bit with removals and pruning. It is nice to
be able to track a trees full history. Davey, where we got the software, will also be putting
together some proposal information to help with the Wisconsin DNR Urban Forestry
Grant.
Stumping – got the final bill from last round so pretty well caught up on those.
The sidewalk contractor this year was phenomenal as far as tree preservation. The only
issues occurred a few weeks ago when they brought in a different operator for one day
and had some pretty significant damage to tree roots on Maryland Avenue. There are two
silver maples that are not likely to survive, so we are issuing a fine to the contractor. Our
Crew just happened to be there and stopped him. They immediately made corrections and
saved four other trees. There was no branch damage.
The new hotel on Tower Avenue paid for a convenience removal of a tree that was
located where their new driveway is going in.
The City will be rolling out the sidewalk plowing route through town this winter. They
will be taking the GIS layer of all the people along that route and send them letters about
the sidewalk clearing and clearance information for their trees. The plowing route for
sidewalks primarily follows the Safe Routes to School.
7. Future Agenda Items Requested
a. Demo of Davey Tree Keeper Software
8. Next meeting: Thursday, October 21, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. in Room 204 in the Government
Center. This meeting may be moved earlier to accommodate recommendations for a
consultant.
Councilor Ludwig announced the meeting adjourned at 5:55 p.m.
Minutes submitted to the Council Meeting of September 7, 2021.
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Agenda
Parks, Recreation & Forestry
1316 North 14th Street, 2nd Floor Phone: (715) 395-7270
Superior, WI 54880 Fax: (715) 395-7346
Web site: www.ci.superior.wi.us TTY: (715) 395-7521
Email: parks@ci.superior.wi.us
TO: Urban Forestry Tree Board Members
FROM: Linda M Cadotte, Director
DATE: August 17, 2021
RE: Urban Forestry Tree Board Agenda
Thursday, August 19, 2021 4:30 p.m.
Government Center, Room 204
Although a quorum must be physically present, the meeting can also be accessed remotely:
You may access this meeting via the link or phone number below.
Join Zoom Meeting: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/85067809664 Or Dial in +1 (312) 626-6799.
Please use Meeting ID: 850 6780 9664 and Password: 746725
The Urban Forestry Tree Board shall advise the common council on matters of the urban forestry program. The urban forestry program shall include
planning for planting, maintenance and removal of trees located in city boulevards and public areas and educating citizens about the city's tree resource.
1. Approve Meeting Minutes from July 15, 2021
2. Superior Municipal Forest Master Plan
a. Discuss Proposal and Interview
b. Recommendation on how to proceed
3. Tree Planting Requests at Wisconsin Point – Input/Approve
4. WI-DNR State Natural Area Strategy Plan – July 2021
a. Highlights and Next Steps
5. Tribute Tree Brochure – Input/Approve
6. Director’s Report
7. Future Agenda Items Requested
8. Next meeting: Thursday, October 21, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. in Room 204 in the Government Center
Notice is hereby given that a majority of the members of the Common Council may be present at the meeting, and although this may constitute a quorum of
the Common Council, the council will not take any action at this meeting
The City of Superior complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. If you are in need of an accommodation to participate in the public meeting
process, please contact Parks, Recreation and Forestry at (715) 395-7270 or by email: parks@ci.superior.wi.us by 4:30 p.m. on the day prior to the
scheduled meeting. The City will attempt to accommodate any request depending on the amount of notice we receive.
In compliance with Wisconsin Open Meetings Law, this agenda was posted: Government Center, Court House, & Public Library, Emailed to: Daily
Telegram, Public Library August 17, 2021.
URBAN FORESTRY TREE BOARD PROCEEDINGS
July 15, 2021
ONSITE Meeting – Superior Dog Park
Members Present: Ruth Ludwig, Jane Anklam, Meghan Gil-de-Lamadrid, Nick Nelson, Richard
Kaufman
Members absent: Robert-Jan Quene
Also present: Linda Cadotte, Ryan Wintlend, Jodi Saylor, Chris Carlson
Chair Ludwig called the meeting to order at 4:34 p.m.
1. Elect Chair and Vice-Chair
a. Chair – Anklam nominated Ludwig as Chair. No other nominations made.
MOTION by Anklam, second by Gil-de-Lamadrid and carried to approve
Ruth Ludwig as the Chair of the Urban Forestry Tree Board Committee.
b. Vice-Chair – Ludwig nominated Anklam as Vice-Chair. No other nominations
made.
MOTION by Ludwig, second by Gil-de-Lamadrid and carried to approve
Jane Anklam as the Vice-Chair of the Urban Forestry Tree Board
Committee.
2. Approve meeting minutes from April 15, 2021.
Motion by Nelson, second by Anklam and carried to approve the minutes from the
April 15, 2021 meeting.
3. Tribute Tree Program
a. Updated Application
The Tribute Tree application was updated to include the price of the plaque in the
price of the purchasing, meaning everyone that purchases a tribute tree will get a
plaque. Prior to this, it was an optional add-on. It was also updated to more clearly
collect information for both the Donor and Recipient certificates. Director Cadotte
is currently looking at options for plaques that do not include a sticker with the
memorial wording on it. The application and pricing could be updated once there
is a new option identified. Gil-de-Lamadrid suggested putting a place on the
application where people could include an optional additional donation that could
go towards the City’s tree canopy. Her suggestion was to include a line with
options like $25, $30, $50 or “Other”.
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b. Promotion Ideas
Several ideas were discussed as a way to promote the Tribute Tree Program.
Those ideas included:
i. Host an Environmental Fair focused on education and sustainability
ii. Create brochures that could be available in local places such as hospitals,
funeral homes, veterinary clinics, etc.
iii. Put metal signs in key locations with QR codes to the Tribute Tree
Program webpage
iv. Plants trees for each of the City holidays with a plaque that talks about the
program. Highlight the program and which tree represents each month in
the newspaper and/or social media.
Richard Kaufman arrived at 4:45pm.
4. Tree in Center City Park
The tree that is used for holiday lightings in Center City Park is reaching the end of its
urban life. There is a large split top on it and it will eventually become a hazard. Cadotte
said that Mayor Paine suggested that we set a final date for the tree and have a public
“retirement” of the tree and then cutting it up and distributing pieces to the community.
The committee discussed ideas such as creating ornaments or slices that are branded with
some sort of logo commemorating it. They also discussed selling the pieces of the
original tree as a fundraiser for the Urban Forestry Program. There could then also be a
celebration planting a new tree in this location. The committee decided that in order to
allow for time to plan, the last year the City would decorate this tree would be the 2022
holiday season with the new tree being planted in spring 2023.
MOTION by Kauffman, second by Gil-de-Lamadrid and carried to plan for
removal of the center tree in Center City Park as it has aged out and will become a
safety issue. There will be a final holiday celebration with the tree, held during the
2022 holiday season, followed by removal of the tree once the lights are removed
and the planting of a new tree in spring of 2023.
5. RFP for Municipal Forest Master Plan – update
RFPs are due by July 27th. There will be interviews schedule the week of July 27th and
August 2nd. It could potentially go to Council August 17th. This is not currently funded.
Cadotte shared that the Mayor thought it would line up fairly well with the CIP
recommendations. If the CIP recommendations do not go to Council around that time, it
might be adjusted slightly for that. Currently, the RFP outlines that it should be finalized
in August 2022. The Committee members expressed that Director Cadotte should go
ahead and schedule interviews and whomever was available from the Committee could
attend.
Between now and when the new plan is in place, there will be minimal action taken
within the Superior Municipal Forest. Other than what is required to maintain the forest,
there will be no major changes or actions taken. There are a couple of bike loops that are
already planned off of the Millennium Trail. If other actions are consistent within the
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guides of the current plans, then it would be allowed to go forward.
6. Director’s Report
a. The America in Bloom Celebration will be on July 16th at the Fairlawn Mansion.
All Committee members are welcome to join us for that event. The plants along
the trail are looking great! The crew and some volunteers have done a great job
freshening that area up. As part of the grant, we purchased a decent amount of
plants for the wetland area in the center of Barker’s Island Festival Parking Lot so
that is being gutted and replanted starting this week.
b. Director Cadotte plans to submit an Urban Forestry Tree Grant. The deadline is in
October. It is a 50/50 match. Putting forward the updated Inventory Tree Risk
Assessment. We got the new software. As part of the implementation of the
software, we did not hire the $85,000 inventory update. We would like to have a
professional service do an accurate update to our inventory. The grant would be to
hire them for $100,000 to get that data. Additionally, they have an option for an
Operations Review. She does not believe we need a full operations review, but
would like to do a pared down version of a review. We have never utilized
software inventory and kept that up ongoing and so would like them to help us,
from an industry perspective, some training on how to keep up with the inventory
going forward. The crew has done a great job, but it is not easy to continually play
“catch up”.
c. Councilor Ludwig asked for an update on the new Tree Software. Wintlend
reported that it has been a great tool. It automates and streamlines many processes
for the crew. It is also nice to be able to enter the data as they are out and around
the City instead of trying to remember it when you get back to the office.
Councilor Ludwig asked that we add a demo of the software to the agenda for the
next meeting.
7. The next meeting will be Thursday, October 21, 2021 at 4:30 p.m. in Room 204 in the
Government Center.
Councilor Ludwig announced the meeting adjourned at 6:04 p.m.
Minutes submitted to the Council Meeting of August 3, 2021.
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"I think that I shall Did you know that trees . . .
never see a poem as
Are the principle generators of
A Tribute
lovely as a tree."
pure oxygen
These words by American poet Joyce
Kilmer capture the love most people
Clean pollutants from the air That Grows
share for trees. This sentiment may be
especially appropriate in urban areas Purify ground water
where trees are particularly noticeable
and play critical roles in the quality of Stabilize the soil
life. Trees are also major capital assets
in our cities and towns—as much an
integral part of the scene as streets,
Reduce energy costs by:
sidewalks, and buildings—they - Providing shade in the summer
represent a major component of the - Blocking winter winds
"green infrastructure."
(From the United States Department of Agriculture
Add value to real estate City of Superior
handout, Benefits of Urban Trees)
Are a refuge for wildlife
Tribute Tree Program
Reduce anxiety and stress
City of Superior
Parks, Recreation & Forestry
1316 N 14th Street, Room 200
Superior, WI 54880
(715) 395-7270
parks@ci.superior.wi.us
www.ci.superior.wi.us
Are you looking for a unique Tribute Tree Program Tree Species Choices
way to recognize an individual
• Citizens can purchase a 1.5” diameter The first nine trees pictured are suitable
or occasion? tree for $200 or a 3” diameter tree for for boulevard planting. The final 3 trees
$350. A corporate program is available at (Bur Oak, Quaking Aspen & Pagoda
a $1,000 level (contact the City Forester for more Dogwood) are suitable for planting in
Program Purpose information on this). Both are tax deductible.
larger, more open areas.
The program encourages the purchase of trees as Good for boulevard planting:
a gift, paying tribute to individuals or groups, or • Choice of species as listed on page to the
for special occasions. right. *The City will make every effort to provide the
species of your choice; however, substitutions may be
made based on availability of stock
~ Birth
~ Anniversary • Planting location: The donor selects
~ Retirement which boulevard, neighborhood or park Hackberry Thornless Japanese Tree
the tree will be planted in. Honeylocust Lilac
~ Graduation
~ Holiday • Planting is done in the spring (May 1-
~ Memorial June 15). Application must be in by
December 1 the previous year.
~ Relative or Friend
• A City crew will plant the tree and care
Citizens and businesses participating in the for it for the duration of its life.
program leave both a living, growing legacy for
future generations, and they American American Kentucky Coffee
• Tribute Trees are guaranteed for one Linden Elm Tree
assist in beautifying the city. year; if a tree fails during this time, the
City will replace it at no cost .
Remember . . .
• The donor, and/or the donor's recipient,
One generation plants the trees; another gets the shade will receive a Tribute Tree Certificate
--Chinese Proverb signed by the Mayor of Superior and
may include a custom message.
• The City will host a dedication ceremony Ironwood Ohio Turkish
Buckeye Filbert
for your living gift including a custom
plaque and recognition in the Superior
Good for larger, more open areas:
Telegram.
If you have any other questions, please call
Parks & Recreation at 715-395-7270
Applications can be found online at:
https://tinyurl.com/SuperiorTributeTreeProgram Bur Oak Quaking Pagoda
Aspen Dogwood
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