Last week, a few members of the EBCA steering committee met with Pam Kliment from the Parks Dept to start an early discussion about trees on 14th (specifically those along the planting strip on the east and west side between NW 59th and NW 61st where the first phase of the 14th Ave NW Park Boulevard will begin).

An arborist study will be part of the park-making process and the city wants to know early on if there are any existing trees along this corridor that are of particular interest to the community.

The EBCA has provided input, but more importantly, we want serious consideration and thoughtful input from you.  We encourage you to provide constructive feedback via the comments section for this post or contact Dawn Hemminger at eastballard@gmail.com.

Some things to think about:

1. Do you have a favorite tree or trees on 14th?
2. What kind of trees would you like to see along the park boulevard and why?

Recommendations made by the EBCA Steering Committee

• The cherry trees are important – Many people in the community enjoy the white blossoms of the cherry trees in Spring. There are some cherry trees that have been pruned very poorly or are poorly located. We recommend that it would be OK to remove some cherry trees if necessary for park design purposes and/or health, but at least one or two significant cherry trees should remain per block on each side of the street for heritage sake.
• Existing large trees should remain if healthy and are not a nuisance – There was a discussion about large trees, e.g. the 2 very large trees between 59th and 60th on the east side. We agreed that there are some benefits of large trees in that they can provide a privacy screen and shade. The benefits should, however, not be at the cost of displacing the walkways due to roots or interfering with the utility lines. Large trees should be proportionate to the scale of the neighborhood.
• A variety of complementing trees are preferred – A variety of different trees and shrubs that complement each other instead of a single specimen along the boulevard is preferred in order to prevent the spread of disease and provide different interests along the way.

Overall, the EBCA believes that it’s really too early to say which trees should stay and which should go until the park has been designed. We appreciate the Parks Dept thinking about this issue early in the process and we want to continue this open conversation throughout the design process. We will be keeping the community posted through this blog on further topics of discussion and will continue to value your thoughtful input.