2011-05-05 Tree Board MinutesCity of Edmonds
Citizen Tree Board
Minutes
May 5, 2011
Members Present: Joan Bloom, John Bottom, Anna Marie Heckman, Dawna Lahti, Sandy
Seligmiller, Barbara Tipton
Members Absent: Laura Spehar
Staff Present: Park Manager Rich Lindsay, Arborist Dave Timbrook
Corrections to April 2011 meeting minutes: The annual budget for the Park Department is
$1.4 million and not $82,000 as reported in the April minutes.
Tree City USA
The group clarified responsibilities for completing the Tree City USA application.
• Standard 1: Tree Board; Barbara Tipton will complete this standard of the application by
the June Tree Board meeting
• Standard 2: Community Tree Ordinance; Barbara will complete this standard with
assistance from city staffer Kernen Lien by the June Tree Board meeting. Barbara will
compile a list of existing references in the city's code and meet with Kernen to discuss
her findings. Kernen will provide photocopies of relevant code.
• Standard 3: Community Forestry Program with an Annual Budget of at least $2 per
Capita; Parks Manager Rich Lindsay provided a letter dated May 5, 2011, to the Tree
Board. According to his letter, the total maintenance budgeted for 2010 was $1,368,964
and current year's budget is $1,424,350. To determine per capita expenditure we will
need to ascertain the official population of Edmonds per the 2010 census. The per capita
expenditure equals the total Park maintenance budget divided by the official population.
• Standard 4: An Arbor Day proclamation and observance; Laura Spehar
Mission Statement
Anna received input from several members and will draft a mission statement by the June
meeting.
Street Trees
Rich Lindsay reported that the city is running out of downtown locations to install street trees.
He suggested that Tree Board members could meet with the citizens in outlying neighborhoods
to discuss the potential installation of street trees.
Other Business
We continued our discussion on the next step after achieving Tree City certification, the Tree
City Growth Award.
• Category A: Tree Education and Public Relations
http://www.arborday.org/programs/treeCitVUSA/growthA.cfm
o Our star writer, Dawna Lahti has written several articles that were published in
"The Edmonds Beacon".
o Dawna brought our attention to Edmonds Memorial Tree program that began in
1983.
o Dawna has suggested a number of ideas for events design to engage and
educate Edmonds residents.
o To provide the public with assistance on understanding the existing tree code, it
was suggested that we publish a tri-fold brochure. Sandy Seligmiller has
experience in graphic arts, and her skills could be utilized to produce a quality
handout. The city would need to provide assistance in duplicating and distributing
the pamphlets.
o Next month, we will discuss the development of a web page for the Tree Board
as a means of communicating with the public.
• Category B: Partnerships http://www.arborday.org/programs/treeCityUSA/growthB.cfm
Suggestions for potential partners include the Snohomish County Public Utility District,
City Staffer Sally Lider who manages the Edmonds Watershed Fun Fair and Edmonds'
Puget Sound Bird Fest, Edmonds Backyard Wildlife Habitat, and the local Audubon
Society chapter.
Anna reported that the Snohomish County critical areas mapping project might include
vegetation mapping data for Edmonds. That baseline information would be helpful for setting
goals for canopy cover and determining progress towards those goals. Once we achieve Tree
City USA status, we would have a better chance of receiving grants for vegetation monitoring.
Rich Lindsay has an action item to see if baseline information from the Snohomish County
project is available for land within the Edmonds city limit.
Public Comment Period
No citizens chose to speak.
The meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm
Respectfully submitted by:
Barbara f%ptow
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