Loading...
04-26-10 CC WS MinCITY OF SHOREWOOD CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION MONDAY, APRIL 2, 2010 5755 COUNTRY CLUB ROAD COUNCIL CHAMBERS 6:00 P.M. Mayor Lizee called the meeting to order at 6:15 P.M. A. Roll Call Present. Mayor Lizee; Councilmembers Bailey, Turgeon, Woodruff and Zerby; Administrator Heck; Finance Director Burton; Planning Director Nielsen; and Engineer Landini Absent: None B. Review Agenda Turgeon moved, Woodruff seconded, approving the agenda as presented. Motion passed 5.0. 2. DISEASED TREE PROGRAM Director Nielsen stated one of Council's objectives for 2010 was to begin discussion about what to do with diseased trees, especially with regard to Emerald Ash Borer (EAB). He explained that in response to influx of Dutch Elm Disease in the 1970s the City adopted diseased tree regulations, it had staff that was certified as tree inspectors, and it maintained a diseased tree enforcement program. It also maintained a burn site where diseased trees were burned. That entire program slowly went away when State funding went away. The City no longer has a diseased tree ordinance. Staff has spent considerable time researching the issues and attending seminars and conferences. Staff recommends the City develop a proactive strategy for addressing tree maladies including EAB. Nielsen stated some cities have taken a very aggressive approach to addressing EAB, especially on the east side of the metropolitan area where the pest is currently present. The City of St. Paul is cutting down Ash trees whether or not they are diseased in order to manage the rate of tree loss and to spread out the cost to remove and replace the trees. Nielsen reviewed a number of steps the City could take to address diseased trees. They are as follows. ➢ Increase effort to educate residents on EAB and other tree maladies. A regular spot should be developed on the City's website, which lists the City's rules and policies relative to diseased trees. It should contain articles from the Department of Agriculture and Natural Resources about diseased trees. The site could also contain links to other pertinent web sites. ➢ The City should update its tree preservation and reforestation policy to remove any kind of Ash tree from the list of acceptable replacement trees. ➢ The City should incorporate a diseased tree ordinance into the City Code. CITY OF SHOREWOOD WORK S ESSION MEUING MINUTES April 26, 2010 Page 2 of 4 The City should conduct an inventory of trees on public property (street rights-of-ways and City -owned parks). The 2011 budget should allocate funds to conduct a tree inventory. The tree removal budget should be increased over the next five to ten years. Staff can explore the cost to conduct such an inventory, and if there are any grant opportunities available from the State for that. Staff will also explore if there are any opportunities to use forestry or agriculture college interns to help with this effort. suggestions One of the -, w at a seminar was if the pest has not arrived yet to start removal the • - they are equally susceptible to EAB, cheaper, less noticeable to remove now, and in ten years they are of a larger size. Staff recommends that trees removed from public property be replaced with a variety of trees. He stated some cities have offered replacement trees to the residents at a lower cost. He noted the City had a program 20 plus years ago where residents could purchase bare -root trees at a lower cost. Staff recommends contacting the surrounding communities to find out if they have any plans to deal with the issue of EAB and if so would they have any interest in working with the City on this. Grant opportunities may be more available if the City partners with other cities cities. Director Nielsen asked Council how proactive it would like the City to be on this. He stated the diseased tree issue is more than just EAB. There is still the issue of Oak Wilt and Dutch Elm Disease. There is a relative new malady called Two -lined Chestnut Borer which attacks stressed Oak Trees. Mayor Lizee recommended the City enhance the information available on tree diseases. She also recommended the City contact the other South Lake cities on a possible joint effort. Councilmember Turgeon stated the education should be broader than just EAB and cover all types of tree diseases. She thought working with the neighboring cities is always good, but she preferred the City focus on the tree inventory on public land. The City could consider pursuing any possible grant applications with South Lake area cities after that. She asked if the City had any employees that are certified arborists. Director Nielsen explained there are a couple of approaches to conducting the inventory. One is to count each specific tree. Another is to take a sampling and extrapolate that information. Councilmember Zerby asked how the City handles diseased trees today on public land. Director Nielsen explained for trees in public rights -of -way normally someone will call City Hall, and then Public Works goes out to determine if it is on public right -of -way. If it is on the ROW, Public Works will remove the tree or contract with a tree service. In City- parks, only trees that are really noticeable are dealt with. Councilmember Zerby stated he also wanted all types of tree diseases to be addressed. He then stated from his vantage it's a problem if the City isn't dealing with diseased trees in public rights -of -way and in the City's parks. Director Nielsen stated one question Council has to answer is whether or not the City should wait until a tree is diseased to remove it. He explained there are a few trees near the City Hall parking lot that are just getting to be a nice size. Unfortunately, they are Ash trees and ten years from now, it is likely they will CITE' OF S UIOREWOOD WORK SESSION MEETING MINUTES April 26, 2010 Page 3 of g be gone. It may be smart to replace them now with a different type of tree so that ten years from now they are of reasonable size. He stated once trees are diseased he recom mended going after them aggressively. Mayor Lizee stated if the City takes a leadership role on this it can be part of the educational effort. Councilmember Turgeon suggested the City educate residents on how to identify various tree types. Director Nielsen stated all Ash trees (with the exception of Mountain Ash, which is not really an Ash tree) are susceptible to EAB. Director Nielsen explained the City used to have an employee in Public Works who was certified for identifying Dutch Elm Disease. There is a training class is scheduled during May to teach people how to identify EAB, and the cost to attend is $65. He suggested the City send someone to the class. Councilmember Turgeon stated she thought it important for the City to have an employee who could identify if a tree is an Ash tree and also if the tree is diseased. She then stated she thought cutting down healthy trees was somewhat like betting the odds. Councilmember Woodruff stated there are people telling residents there are bogus EAB treatments available. He suggested the City educate the people on what legitimate treatments are available. He stated there is one treatment available that may work but it's very expensive. He agreed that the City's tree preservation and reforestation policy needed to be updated to remove any kind of Ash tree from the list of acceptable replacement trees. The City should also come up with a recommendation of what to do with diseased trees that have been cut down. A tree inventory of City -owned property should be done to provide some idea of what the scope of the problem will be if EAB becomes wide spread in the City, and what a replacement strategy should be. He noted the City should not inventory private property. He stated he thought it would be beneficial to contact the South Lake area cities about what they are doing or planning to do, and to research if there are any grant funds available. He suggested the Building Inspector be trained on how to identify EAB. The Inspector is out and about and goes on residential property. The Inspector could provide some free consulting if the Inspector was on -site for another purpose. He commented Council would have to decide if the City should proactively take on inventorying private properties. Mayor Lizee stated she did not want the City to be involved with private properties. Councilmember Woodruff stated on demand the City may want to do it, but he would like to discuss that further. Mayor Lizee stated by the City taking an inventory of Ash trees in its parks and in public rights -of -way it will provide residents with some idea of what the scope of the EAB issue could be. She also suggested a Public Works employee also be trained to recognize EAB diseased trees. Councilmembers Turgeon and Woodruff agreed with also training someone in Public Works. Councilmember Bailey asked if Director Nielsen envisioned that down the road that all diseased trees on private property, especially those with EAB, would have to be cut down. Nielsen responded once the trees get the disease then yes. Bailey stated when Dutch Elm Disease was an issue those trees were easier to get to because they tended to be located in boulevards. Director Nielsen stated Ash trees are a large part of the forest. He then stated the experts are saying that ten years from now Ash trees will be gone. Starting to replace the young Ash trees sooner versus later will ensure there are some larger trees down the road. CITY OF SHOREWOOD WORK SESSION MEETING MINUTES April 26, 2010 Page 4 of 4 Mayor Liz6e stated the example Director Nielsen gave of maybe replacing the younger Ash trees near the City Hall parking lot makes sense to her. Nielsen stated its likely those trees will become diseased. Nielsen commented the Department of Natural Resources has a list of preferred trees. Councilmember Turgeon stated the City needs to explain to residents how to dispose of wood chips and wood from diseased Ash trees. Councilmember Bailey stated he thought the City should have some responsibility for disposing of wood and chips fi diseased Ash trees. The trees will likely come down in large numbers. Administrator Heck stated in 2008 and 2009 Council discussed the idea of conducting a resident survey. If Council is still interested in conducting, a survey it needs to decide what will be in the survey. He explained most cities use Decision Resources to conduct such a survey. The International City/County Managers Association (ICMA) also provides survey services. Mayor Liz6e asked the Councilmembers if they had any interest in conducting a survey of its residents in 201 The Councilmembers did not express any interest in doing one. Administrator Heck stated he likes the ICMA National Citizens Survey. If Council wants to have such a survey conducted in 201 dollars have to be budgeted to do so. Councilmember Turgeon stated she would prefer to conduct citizen focus group sessions on specific topics, but not this year. Councilmember Zerby stated the City did that a few years ago as a visioning process. She stated what she was talking about would be City residents only. The visioning exercise also involved residents of Excelsior. 4. ADJOURN Woodruff moved, Zerby seconded, Adjourning the City Council Work Session of April 26, 2010, at 6:50 P.M. Motion passed 510. RESPECTFULLY SUBMITTED, Christine Freeman, Recorder C , —U Christine Liz6e, Mayor ATTEST: Brian Heck. Cifv,/A4iuWstrator/Clerk