HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-04-2017 Item 16, ChristieRECEIVED
COUNCIL MEETING: 5' APR O 2017
ITEM NO.:
From: Santa Lucia Chapter of the Sierra Club
Sent: Monday, April 03, 2017 1:51 PM
To: E-mail Council Website <emailcouncii@sloclty.or >
Cc: Harmon, Heidi <hharmon@slocitv.ore>; Pease, Andy <apease@slocity.org>; Gomez, Aaron <a omex slocit .or >;
Rivoire, Dan <DRivoire0slocit .orl;>; Christianson, Carlyn <cchristianson@slocitv.oT>
Subject: Apr. 4 meeting, Agenda Item #16: Appeal of 71 Palomar
RE: 4/4/17 meeting, Agenda Item #16: Appeal of approval of 71 Palomar Avenue project.
Dear Mayor Harmon and Councilmembers,
The Sierra Club joins with those citizens objecting to the removal of 55 mature trees for the proposed development at 71 Palomar
Street.
We support Dr. Matt Ritter's finding that the study relied upon by the City to characterize the trees at this location is "poor,
misleading, inaccurate and not well researched," fails to identity almost 20% of the trees on the site, and otherwise displays an
unacceptable level of inaccuracy. We urge the Council to heed Dr. Ritter's conclusion that the Tree Committee has not had "the
opportunity to review a correctly prepared tree inventory and arborist's report. The current information that the city has is not accurate
or complete enough for us to proceed with an informed decision on the value of the biological resources on the project site."
The serious flaws pointed out by Dr. Ritter concerning tree height, health, and correct identification in both the reports submitted by
A&T Arborist and Rincon Consultants merit the rejection of a project application that relies on the characterizations in these reports to
authorize tree removal.
There are also larger related issues which the studies did not consider but the Council should. Sacramento's Urban Forestry Section
notes that most urban trees are on private land, but, in conjunction with those maintained by municipalities, "provide us with multiple
benefits and are a unique green infrastructure that continually gives back when properly maintained. In fact, City trees are the only
public assets that can increase in value as they age." As we reported in the September 2015 issue of Sierra magazine ("Why Urban
Trees Are So Important"), multiple studies have pointed out the importance of maintaining urban forests in lowering stress levels,
reducing the rate of childhood asthma, and providing refuges for migrating birds.
In 2008, Columbia University researchers writing in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health found that asthma rates
among children aged four and five fell by 25% for every extra 343 trees per square kilometer.
A2010 study in the journal Landscape Ecology found "With the expansion of urban areas worldwide, migrating songbirds
increasingly encounter fragmented landscapes where habitat patches are embedded in an urban matrix. Within migration, land birds
spend up to 90% of their time resting and regaining energy at stopover sites, making habitat a key component.... These findings
suggest that remnant forests within urban areas have conservation value for Swainson's thrushes and, potentially, other migrant land
birds. Obviously, larger forest patches are better, but even smaller ones are worth saving."
Per a 2003 presentation to the American Public Works Association by E. Gregory McPherson, Director of the Center for Urban
Forestry, Pacific Southwest Research Station of the US Forest Service, trees can reduce atmospheric carbon dioxide by 100 to 200
pounds per tree annually. (As shady canopies help reduce urban temperatures and a/c usage, trees also reduce energy demand on
utilities and thereby further reduce carbon emissions.) McPherson also found that large evergreens reduce stormwater runoff by as
much as 4,000 gallons per tree. This is in addition to the ability of trees to filter out harmful substances that wash off of roads, parking
lots, and roofs during storms.
In view of the foregoing, we urge you to exercise your discretion, uphold the appeal of the ARC'S approval of the project, and direct
the applicant to come back with a design for a project with a reduced footprint that minimizes the amount of grading and tree removal
contemplated for this site.
Thank you for your attention to this issue,
Andrew Christie
Chapter Director