Ridewood Shade Tree Commission Meeting Minutes 30300310

Ridgewood Shade Tree Commission Meeting Minutes
March 10, 2020

Opening

The regular meeting of the Ridgewood Shade Tree Commission was called to order at 7:35PM on March 10, 2020 by Andrew Lowry.
Present
Andrew Lowry, Michael Sedon, Melody Corcoran, Ian Keller, Carolyn Jacoby, Declan Madden, Steve McCabe, Susan Nashel, Lorraine Reynolds
Approval of Minutes
Motion to approve the minutes for February 11, 2020 was made by Andrew Lowry, seconded by Carolyn Jacoby, and approved by all present.

Tree Inventory
Declan Madden will be meeting with Davey Tree on March 25 for the start of the tree inventory in Area A. Civil Solutions has received the $50,000 purchase order for the tree inventory from the village.

CFMP Annual Report
Manish Shrimali has submitted the completed annual accomplishment report to the New Jersey Community Forestry Program (NJUCFP).

Tree City, Arbor Day, Earth Day
The village has been approved as a Tree City for 2020. A Tree City resolution is needed from the village council. Mike Sedon and Andrew Lowry will follow-up on this.
For the Earth Day event, Susan Nashel has requested two tables and four chairs. A canopy for sun protection will also be requested.
2018 Planting
Andrew Lowry will speak to Nancy Bigos about ensuring that Declan Madden is given the time to check on the 2018 plantings and prune the trees as required.

League of Women Voters and Budget
The LWV submitted a letter to the Ridgewood News urging the village council to fully fund the Parks and Recreation Department’s budget request this year for the planting of municipal shade trees.
$150,000 was requested. $110,00 was approved.
Trees must be kept in the forefront of village council considerations. The council needs to be continually reminded of the immeasurable value of trees. Scout, LWV, community, and STC presentations to the council must continue to reinforce the importance of trees to our village and to future generations.

October Public Presentation
Carolyn Jacoby has reserved the library auditorium for October 20, 2020 at 7pm. Pat Burke from Bartlett Tree has agreed to be the speaker. The topic of the presentation has not been decided yet. The results of the tree inventory may suggest the topic.

Licensed Tree Companies
Declan Madden informed the STC that Licensed Tree Companies (LTCO) do not have to employ a Licensed Tree Expert (LTE). Only an LTE can assess tree health and determine if a tree needs to be cut down because of disease or damage.
Landscapers must be registered with the village; it would be a good idea to have LTCOs and LTEs also registered with the village. This is a project to present to the village council in the future.

Central Business District
Ian Keller met with Mayor Hache to discuss trees in the CBD and tour the new parking garage site. There are to be five trees planted on the Hudson Street side of the garage and one on the Broad Street side. It is an excellent opportunity to use structural soil in a long trench and under the sidewalk, giving the new trees the best chance of growing successfully. The trees themselves would be planted in soil. Bartlett Tree has recommended using Biochar as a soil amendment. The trench and tree wells need to be designed; a permeable surface chosen; a water source provided; and, possibly, a port included in each tree well to permit the application of fertilizer.
The plans for this type of tree planting need to go through Chris Rutishauser, Heather Mailander and the village council. Mike Sedon will put this on the agenda for the next village council meeting. Ian Keller will email Mayor Hache about the plan.
Adopt-a-Tree
The warranty on Adopt-a-Trees is not currently known. At a resident’s request, Declan Madden replaced a 2018 Adopt-a-Tree that had died. A warranty time limit for tree replacement needs to be included in the Adopt-a-Tree application form.
Because many trees are now being planted in the village, whether or not Adopt-a-Tree will be continued needs to be discussed further.

Adjournment
Meeting was adjourned at 9:05PM by: Andrew Lowry.
Minutes submitted by: Melody Corcoran

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