Lesli noticed that there are 12 trees marked for removal / destruction along the Burke Gilman where Pacific turns into 34th, across from Gas Works. The signs said that the trees are unhealthy, but she thought they looked alright, so she contacted the Seattle City Arborist, Lou Stubecki.
Lesli tells us that Lou replied that the owner of the building the trees are in front of (and perhaps blocking the view from) has been illegally hacking away at the trees for years, and the City finally caught him at it. The trees look good, but are structurally damaged. The owner will pay to replace the trees with a compromise assortment. Some will be narrower, some shorter, some will get taller.
Lesli reminds you: If you are ever concerned about the fate of any of Seattle’s trees, Lou is there for us! Info at SDOT City Arborist web site and (206)684-TREE (8733).
What does this tell us about the political process?
Isn’t that sad. He should of thought about it before he built there. or maybe it’s is a condo and couldn’t sell. Hope fully he is not from Seattle
So if I destroy massive trees in front of my property, the punishment is that I have to replace them with smaller trees of my choosing? Terrifying.
I’m not so sure Lou is there for us. He left us a notice that our trees were marked for pruning because of their height and the power lines. I will say he worked with us and went out to check our trees again and finally gave us the OK for us to prune them not the crew that does it for the city. One morning not long after I saw the pruning crew and went out to talk to them. They were determined to prune our trees even after admitting they had the notes from Lou. We finally got them to pass us by, for this year. Several days later I was walking down our street and saw the awful pruning job this crew did. It was crushing to see what they did to old growth (for Seattle) trees. Two evergreen trees were topped at about 1/2 their original height, just sheared across with a saw, and about 3/4 of the branches were cut off leaving a small tuft of branches which was about 1/4 of what was there originally. I called Lou and he held firm that this was for the health of the tree and it would be fine. I can imagine what they will do to our trees when they get a chance. I’m sure the city subcontracts out the job, but still, for a city that supposedly values it’s trees I’m not so sure this shows it.
A business illegally prunes city trees and isn’t slapped with a fine? That sends a bad message. Also considering the law was broken, the business’ name should really be made public. There are at least three commercial buildings at that intersection on Pacific.
Hello tree lovers! This is Wallingford’s own Alan Lamp with Fluent Tree. I have been an ISA certified arborist since 2001. I personally know Lou Stubecki thru Plant Amnesty and working with him when he ran the tree crew at the arboretum as well as his current position with the city. Lou is definitely on you side! The decisions made about street trees often require considering many factors that may not be apparent to the untrained eye. The city always refuses to remove or top trees for views. Tree stability and unfortunately ” progress” are the most common factors for condemning a tree. Before trashing(I’m referring to someone who commented with a negative tone) a very respected member of the arborist community, go donate some time and money to Plant amnesty( as Lou and I have for many years) where folks have a common bond to care for trees correctly and save as many as we can.
The 12 marked trees are pretty sad looking, all right. From a block away, they’re leafy lollipops, but the pruning has been rather ham handed. They could live on for decades, but it’s clear that they aren’t going to make it to ancient great street tree status, so might as well start over. I wonder what they need to “get a conviction” on these guys – would they look at a ruinously pruned tree and wonder who done it, because they’re not allowed to assume it’s done at the direction of the adjacent owner, might instead have been the masked maple murderer again?
Lou would like Wallyhood readers to know that the property owner who over-pruned the trees along the Burke Gillman Trail by Gas Works Park has been very cooperative.
Information about tree pruning is available on our website, http://www.seattle.gov/transportation/pruningguides.htm
Planting the right kind of tree for the location helps avoid tree problems.
From Marybeth Turner, Seattle Department of Transportation
Not planting any tree at all avoids tree problems, too. The impression we’re left with here is that the building owner will limit street tree height to 15 feet or so to keep them out of view from the 2nd floor. If that’s his privilege, then might as well use city money to plant real trees elsewhere.
Wow! Just wow…