City of Portsmouth, New Hampshire Trees & Greenery Committee, 13 Jul 2022

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From YouTube: 7.13.2022 Trees & Public Greenery Committee

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7.13.2022 Trees & Public Greenery Committee

A

Good morning, everyone I'm richard adams, the vice chairman of the increased agreement committee.

B

Standing up for peter lachman, who has some personal issues first item of business, is an.

B

Acceptance of the minutes of the journey meeting and eight comments, corrections.

B

But not the standard is presented.

C

We have one set of tree: removal requests for the eight red maples appear silent.

C

uh I believe it's just declared, I think it's sick. It should be six right, yeah, it's listening.

C

To six on the agenda, don't just make sure um actually peter do you want to speak to that.

D

I know the trees, but I'm not as familiar with the project yeah, so.

C

The removals are associated with the pool renovation project. That's been underway.

C

In design, for probably three years now, um the phil, the existing block, filter building, um it's.

C

Not adequate to house the equipment necessary to you know have a modern, filtration system.

C

And given its location, we need to move it away from the shoreline more not to better comply.

C

With wetlands permits and things like that and that crowds the area whether these four.

C

Red maples, um you know looking at it, you know we're gonna, be in the root zone. We're gonna we're.

C

Gonna damage them um and we could leave them, um but it'll be a slow death um and you know.

C

Talking to chuck, you know we feel, like you know, it's better just to bite the bullet, remove them.

C

And um and go ahead and you know plant some alternative trees, um location just far enough.

C

Away from the building, so um so that's really the genesis of the need. um I I did see where the.

C

Work would be done and I think it's a guaranteed death. So if we do leave, then we'd be.

D

Now in it uh for a lot of work to remove them in two years, uh just with our tree crew, as opposed to.

D

um Right now, I believe it would be part of the project rolling into the project, um so.

D

It would save us money in the long run and we obviously we would want to replant out there, which.

D

We have been doing, but uh we could have a few others it's unfortunate, but I saw where the.

D

Wars would be done. I would be amazed if they maybe get destroyed on that whole side pool side of them.

D

Because there's no water line or just the actual powerhouse.

C

It's a it's a what's called a surge tank, and so it's a large underground, vault and then the the.

C

Pump area for the filter, building the filters themselves and and pipes to and from the pool.

C

So it's it's! It's a deep! It's not just a you know that great type thing where you could.

C

Potentially, use a lightweight aggregate not to crush the roots you're down into the roots.

B

It's really too bad. I I looked at them. I there's so little shade at the pool and I could see people.

B

Were sitting there and trying to enjoy the little bit of shade that it offers and some.

B

Of those are beautiful red maples I mean there's, I took pictures of them. I mean a couple of them.

B

One of them definitely should have been removed, because it's not doing all of it.

B

But um so again conflicted you know, I understand the need and I I don't think it slows down.

C

A good thing either and we could try to take.

C

You know minimize the number we take down and see if they survive.

C

um I you know talking to chuck and looking at it, I just I don't see it yeah. Can we have a motion.

B

For removal and then we can have discussion I'll, make a motion. A second okay discussion now.

B

If you minimized it, what would that be uh for remove tuesday or what we would have to.

C

Work with chuck and c as we're doing the work um you know, dig down and see if we're getting.

C

Into the roots as much as we thought things are going to be, you know if there's a potential to.

C

Salvage anything, so I would I would you know if you were going to do that. You know we would say.

C

You know prove off six and then we would do you know the work to try to see if we.

C

Can save any of them would encourage it, because he's gonna have to make some unsafe decisions.

E

When you get it, you can't we're not stopping just coming back to us. You know a month or so.

E

And you're going to be down there and you're going to look at it like yeah, okay, it's okay,.

C

Yeah the time frame too, you know, if you can imagine a project of this magnitude and then.

C

Having the pool have to be open next summer, you know it's like. I will not live in town.

E

And once you start really looking at the tree a little closer and they all look.

E

Great when you look at them quick, you know what I mean you start looking at. You know, we've all seen.

E

Trees, where you don't see something when you first get into it around the back side, a little bit.

E

Better and all that stuff he's going to see some stuff said we can't you know we can't see. So he.

A

So you're heading up a couple of problems so yeah I play at the volleyball court quite a bit.

A

And there's two trees within the court that are slated for removal. I have mixed feelings about.

A

That, because I think sometimes the two of them will prevent a loose ball from going into the pool.

A

Might increase the height of the fence right right there? That would be a suggestion, but on the other.

A

Hand, uh um the roots of those trees seem to just go horizontally and actually were approaching.

A

On the uh the border of that sand, court and uh some of us, uh this volunteer work and.

A

It started digging up the roots because some of the uh the roots were breaking through the sand.

A

And uh myself, I I stepped on a couple of those things while running after roosevelt.

A

Sir, would you.

A

My name's tom spark I'm a wrestler with forza 133, lincoln avenue. Thank you thanks.

D

For the comments.

D

Unfortunately, I just think due to the nature of the work.

D

We'll be cleaning up a mess in two years ourselves and then be at the same spot. Two years later, you.

D

Know which I think yeah it's difficult, and I agree about the shade, particularly in that.

D

Section, but it's one of these things where there's infrastructure going in and we can't stop that so.

D

It might as well be proactive. Is there any money in the budget for some um umbrellas.

F

Because shade is a problem yeah, you know, that's a direct department, question yeah, but I do know.

C

I work with them very closely, and I do know that they're aware of this and that the anticipation is.

C

Either some sort of pergola or something oh, oh, that'd, be lovely.

C

And the thought is that the above, the search tank could be a flat deck area that people sit on so.

C

So it's not committed- and this is a you know- this is a legacy type of investment. You know.

C

The pool's been there for 100. The years is the largest outdoor pool on the east coast.

C

All right yeah- and this is truly some sort of thing- it's massive, but it's it's it's a gym. I mean.

F

So beautifully right on the river.

C

So this is an investment, you know and we will plant and trees will come back and get our.

B

It's probably not commonly known, but it was.

B

Started in 1946, and originally it was fed by one sophomore tomorrow,.

F

It shows how soft we become.

F

I'd love to have to filter that one.

C

There was a picture recently posted. I don't know whether it was in conjunction with.

B

Just public awareness there's about eight or ten of us seated on the edge of the pool for an eight.

B

O'clock swimming lesson: brian rafferty was the was the instructor of that class. I'm the last.

B

B

High school, they were in charge of the maintenance.

B

And lifeguard support, and I remember they would go out with a five gallon pocket.

B

When did that come downtown.

F

We always appreciate that.

B

D

Chuck right now we are uh in full watering mode, got a little rain yesterday, but uh there's really.

D

Two days a week right now that staff are watering all of this here and last year's trees. The.

D

Lists are combined um we're looking pretty good there's a couple, as we mentioned mortalities that.

D

At least one of them will replant this fall, um but we're looking good uh on top of that we're doing.

D

This is the time of year. We get a ton of service requests from residents for pruning.

D

um We don't keep up with it, we just do the best we can and uh it's usually about a.

D

Two week wait currently, uh but if it's an emergency, it goes to the front of the.

D

List but it's a lot of keeping up with pruning requests and also requests from the trash truck.

D

If that truck or these employees are getting whacked by limbs,.

D

We're on those streets raising those, that's that's a priority. If you see them out there.

D

Because emergency vehicles like fire and trash, need to get down the roads quickly.

D

Some longer term projects this summer, we're looking to.

D

Redo the porous pavement on quarter street there's uh all those zelkovas.

D

Section of porter street and that poorest payment. We now do this all in-house.

D

And everything downtown was done in-house, but before we did it in-house that was contracted.

D

And it's an inferior product to what we use now, so we're going to cut those all out and redo them.

D

As well as finish us, the downtown trees that don't have it um no, it's actually it turns into that, but.

D

uh Think of it as uh it's actually a bag of stone, a bag of there, it's recycled truck tires, and we.

D

Combine them in a mixer and you add in a binder, so it's kind of like making a rice, crispy treat.

D

That's exactly what we thought it was like. We just did it in durham, it's exactly like rice, 50 drinks,.

D

You just lay that out by hand, and it has a cure time of depends on the weather, but I think it's.

D

Like 12 hours, it's good weather, but yeah, that's a summer project we're looking to get done.

D

Probably the next month or so, and it's really effective, it really is the trees have done well.

D

With it and it keeps trash out, we don't have to worry about trash.

D

There's nowhere for the trash to go and the water passes through freely and we've demoed.

D

That we have a cookie of it and you can pour water. It just goes straight through, which is.

D

Pretty cool um yeah other than that. That's what we've got going on already have a lot of requests.

D

For planting for next spring, those are coming in so we're organizing uh the 400 trees. What's.

D

Going on around that we've in the early phases of I think aj can speak to that a little bit, but.

D

Working with a nursery to we'll plant 200 trees as city staff, instead of instead of the 100 or so and.

D

We'll have basically a tree drive for residents, um we'll have another 200 trees brought in and.

D

Folks can come pick up their tree um and plant them wherever they please in the city and they're.

D

In their yards or side yards or backyards yeah, well that ties in with the next agenda.

B

Before before we leave, can I just check, do you you know, you said that it's it's.

F

Winter is a good time to probe. Yes, and I I don't know if people really realize that or they think.

F

That's just an impossible sort of thing, so perhaps every time somebody requests you might shoot back.

F

You know winter time is available as well. Oh yeah and the reason is uh they don't see it.

D

Until car leaves are touching their house right, so if you don't see it, maybe the untrained eye.

D

Doesn't know but yeah, it is true winter's a good time until it's not a good time. It depends on.

D

The winter you know yeah we're in plowing mode, there's three weeks or so where people are like.

D

Recovering from the past two weeks of storms, but yes, it is worth uh spreading. The word about that.

B

Okay, uh yesterday deborah and I met with valerie who's, apparently heading up the whole 400.

F

Projects and uh turn you ever and summarize what we discussed um well, uh we just introduced.

F

Ourselves and uh dick gave a tremendous uh history of the trees and greenery and valley really.

F

Appreciated knowing where we've come from- um and uh we just you know, just started conversations.

F

And it's really kind of in dpw's ball. uh You know where what's going to happen and aj and.

F

How it's going to roll out, but she we kind of arrived that they can pr it. They can message it.

F

And they can also do a community rally around um for the residents for learning how to plant.

F

Properly and how to water properly, and also get rally the troops to do plantings in places that.

F

Perhaps people citizens aren't choosing to plant, such as in some of our lower income, neighborhoods.

F

um So that was a conversation that we talked about and she she really they want to be as inclusive as.

F

Possible, that's a big thing for not just downtown portsmouth but downtown and all around, and so we.

F

Will just can connect with you guys and see how we can be the liaisons with what she has to offer.

F

And what which, what we you need, what we need anything else you covered it quite well.

C

So if we could, just to that end, um we've met aj chuck and I met to kind of talk about.

C

The mechanisms of process of how we anticipate doing this, as chuck said you know, we're going to.

C

Be doing 200 within the city staff, which is going to be a significant challenge relative to water.

C

Right so we're anticipating having to hire an additional seasonal staff person.

C

To help with the watering, um but then another water and then yeah, we got to build another.

C

Watering tank set up for a vehicle, but we talked about the other 200 buying them in bags or buckets.

C

Do we decide bags um and having them staged at the urban forestry center.

C

And you know, have it set up and then have a specific weekend where we, you know, get.

C

People to come, and we do a quick demonstration on how to do it properly. We'll have the video on.

C

Online reference to that, um so you know the assistant's putting into the marketing type.

C

Or the outreach information would really be a great assistance uh and working with the 400th.

C

uh On that side, okay, good, um I don't know if we're aj or chuck if there's anything else that you guys.

C

Want to add so like with our pre-planning video video shows exactly how to plant a tree properly.

C

It'd be helpful, whoever that was even if they did a card. That said now, everyone has a smartphone. It.

C

Seems like yes so attached to the tree or when they pick up energy. They get that card.

E

And you can do a qr code going right to that link or you can just find the link either.

E

Or what that would be that'd be awesome, because then everyone would at least have the opportunity.

E

Basically, what we're going to do is uh order in some trees, we'll work with rolling greens.

E

On this they're going to handle the wholesale end of things and everything else, but basically the.

E

Tree is going to show up, you know a bag. That's like you know about. Besides a five gallon pail.

E

A little bit shorter, uh some of them are cloth bags with handles. Some of them are not the trees.

E

You know you can pick it up, throw them back. You may be in type of deal uh four to six feet. Tall.

E

Depending on the species, we've selected some species, but we don't know what we'll get until.

E

uh So the intention is, you know, blocks of you know, 50 or so of each one of these species.

E

Chuck- and I will work on that- we won't get confirmation on what we're getting until.

E

Mid-September uh the trees would be shipped out to us during the dorm season. So sometime early march.

E

uh We're gonna have to babysit them at my place for a few weeks or months.

E

uh From basically march to early april, the attention would be second third week or whatever.

E

Of april, to give us enough cushion, depending on the ships, power chips and everything else,.

E

To get the trees out to folks uh early uh before blood break before we have to worry about, you know.

E

All kinds of issues with watering we know we're gonna have to water these trees. uh We may have.

E

To stake them, we have to cover them, we have to deal with frost but peter- and I are talking about.

E

Workouts mechanisms, those kind of things, but the intention to do it right at the top by parking lot.

E

So we'll just let folks, you know, come in circle a lot of cars through there. uh We may have to you.

E

Know do a pick up eight to noon, for you guys for certain sections of the town or whatever, and you.

E

Know doing the tour for different things. You know just so. We don't get loaded with cars, but we can.

E

We can handle several hundred cars in there at once that we can look for festival, trees.

E

uh You know how to do that yeah, so we were looking at doing it at the recycling facility and.

E

Just too many cars and too much and too much space and holding onto the trees would be difficult.

E

So that's what we're going at! uh We need to order the trees this week.

E

um So we're going to be working with that. We've already got a commitment out of eversource.

E

uh To provide some funding either directly to the nursery. After this, they they committed 10.

E

Trees and we all agreed that we could sort of shift. You know ten largest trees into a bunch.

E

More smaller trees, uh so we were to uh we had those conversations already uh and so they're.

E

Willing to commit some time to that we're going to put some funding into this of our facility, peter.

E

Already has some funding to pull together for this, so the punting and the mechanisms.

F

Everything's turning and everything's going to hit, yeah and rotary is has contributed. uh 15.

F

And this is under the legacy pillar of the seven pillars of the 400.

F

Awesome, isn't that awesome? I know legacy makes sense right, it's fabulous, so people.

E

Will be able to pick up some soil if they needed that place as well, some they will.

E

Have to put together some kind of package that they can bring up in their box or whatever else.

E

uh Because you know they may be planting rough ground, so we'll try to have some of these.

E

That's great so we're going to need a lot of you guys.

E

uh We've already planned on you guys coming into this mix. Oh tracy,.

E

We'll try to plant at least a couple of these trees right at my place, early on.

E

uh So come look at them see where we're going, even if we have to move out of that location.

E

uh In that process, chuck's got stepped it's going to take a video of the process of planting.

E

Buns in the bag, the idea is, you know it's just a cloth bag. So it's easy to transport easy handle.

E

And it really makes sense to just take it off just kind of fits in the animal's mindset. So.

E

These trees work out great. If you want to see the trees online, you can look up figaro liners.

E

V-I-G-O-R-L-I-N-E-R.

F

F

To talk to her, I guess the morning when you guys were going to talk to her, it was just.

B

A coincidence- and she was excited, but you know didn't know how much she could help out. So can you.

F

Work on logistics, you know I'll agree that it's not worth. I mean it's going to show up in a trap.

F

You know we've got to handle these trees ten times. Let's have them get out of the back of the truck.

F

So we'll pull them out line them up all that kind of stuff we're gonna try to do with their place.

F

Yeah, okay, any fruit trees. Is that a good idea or a bad idea? We we didn't do any fruit, trees.

F

The health officer tends to look.

F

One more historical item that might be both instructive and uh inspirational. I found a.

F

Pamphlet at the end of the dedication of lankan park, which is across the street.

B

And it was dedicated in 1876 and would bring fanfare and they had bands they solicited from.

B

The citizens of the area 100 trees. They ended up with over 600. I don't know where they put them all.

B

They're all listed in this pamphlet, if any of which I made a copy of anybody.

C

That would be, you know, can make it scan that and put it online.

C

Yeah that'd be pretty cool, you know, put it in the park's ingredient portion.

C

That'd be really neat yeah yeah, they have the species and the donors names.

C

Do you have that scan dick? Is that, do you have a digital version of it.

C

I don't know I can get one for the st okay that'd be great. If you I'd love to get that posted yeah.

E

Excellent for the folks that kind of knew onto the committee and stuff years ago we took down.

E

That big red oak, we tracked the history of that right out backwards uh into this process.

E

I think there's still a couple of trees from that original planting that are still with us.

C

How old do you think that they, both on the corners, is that it's a red oak on the that's.

C

Old, it's very old. The one that we took down was over 200 years old, along the corner of.

E

Yeah, this is close to six feet. I'd, say yeah.

D

Has everyone here seen that uh dawn redwood in the backyard on richards avenue? Yes, I've not seen.

D

That well our own dawn redwood, which we blended just a few years ago. It's really flourishing. Yes,.

D

And it's doing great there's a field going around, but uh this particular one is the library there's.

D

That playing field right next to the library yes kind of board is the middle school. Yes, if you just.

D

Look into someone's backyard right here. You can't miss it. You don't have to go into their backyard.

D

From here it's 100 feet tall, but it's uh we're close to it. Yeah.

D

I now envision that right in the south mill parking lot up here at city hall and 100, full.

D

I think I'm pretty quick 60 years, I can't fish pretty cool, hey any thoughts on that.

C

Spruce that get hit by um lightning looks like it's starting to decline. To the point where it's.

D

I could I can take a look yeah. We just because of the.

D

Yeah, we were really using it as like a science experiment, yeah to just see how.

D

Quickly, it declines, but I last I checked it was in decline, still had life, but I could take another.

D

Look yeah, it looked like it was from a distance up top looked dead. That might be an area where we do.

D

We could do another habitat, spar, yeah, uh but I'll. Take a look okay, because I have a task for it.

D

Happen is actually an informational sign in langdon park test of what they are go check it out.

D

Right at lincoln um there's that little entrance to this section of langdon it tells.

D

There's a habitats far there and a sign that emily made one of our interns. But it's really.

D

Habitat this this particular one had like cavity in it. So there's potential for cavity.

D

That's through squirrels uh birds of prey can land on top of it to use for a perch.

D

Various critters, so it's kind of like uh yeah. What we'll do is, if there's a tree that.

D

Such as this one, it was a sugar maple that the whole top was dead that had some little life on.

D

The bottom and uh we'll cut it down, it will make like jagged edges. It's called a coordinate, cut.

D

And it mimics storm damage and we'll leave the star and wildlife loves those.

D

Sparks nice, but there's a there's, a right location for it. You know we.

D

Won't do it in the middle of prescott park or something like that. We're gonna, do it.

D

That's kind of semi-wooded at langley, yeah or yeah same with the, where the spruce isn't landed.

D

You're surrounded by other trees, there's more wildlife, whereas we're not going to do it at.

D

Goodwin park would be kind of a weird area to do it. um For example, it's more of a urban room.

F

We always appreciate learning something new.

F

Okay, is there any uh unfinished business.

B

What's the status of canada we're uh we're planning on uh having another public uh discussion.

C

Starting in september, the project was postponed, uh we're moving forward lincoln avenue, um sidewalks.

C

um But we're not um both panaway and maple haven are on hold that have gathered additional public.

C

Input there's a feeling out of panaway that the process got railroaded uh by a minority.

C

There's a lot of feedback from the residents out there like we wanted the sidewalks. Why are you.

C

Stopping um so we'll we'll get more input and be clearer about free removal that way.

C

And nobody can claim they didn't understand. Will these big public meetings.

B

And if we wanted to attend absolutely they'll be notified, they'll be posted.

F

You know condolences to peter, as he has now broke his uh his uh perfect attendance peter long.

F

He now has no perfect attention, he's so proud number 22 right.

B

Well, that's wonderful.