Richmond council may form tree-policy panel

Richmond's trees may soon have a voice in city government.

The City Council will consider a proposal tomorrow to create an Urban Forestry Commission to develop policies for maintaining the city's trees, removing ones that pose hazards, and replacing them with the right trees in the right places.

The proposal came through a council committee last week on a 3-0 vote. Two earlier attempts to establish the commission and revise the city's existing tree ordinance went nowhere this year.

"We've been working on this for a year," said Sarah Driggs, chairwoman of the city's Urban Design Committee and a volunteer on numerous groups dedicated to conserving Richmond's trees. "Who's against trees?"

No one is saying they are against trees, but neither the Department of Public Works nor the administration of Mayor Dwight C. Jones would take a position last week on creating a commission to speak for the trees.

"The administration still has the matter under review," said Tammy D. Hawley, the mayor's press secretary.

Hawley's response echoed that of Dexter White, director of the Public Works Department, which has come under fire in recent years for a perception it is too quick to cut down trees and too slow to replace them. White has made some changes that please conservationists, such as enforcing an existing policy for replacing trees and giving advance notice to residents before cutting down trees along streets and other public property.

"Dexter White has provided leadership in changing things," said Paul DiPasquale, a Fulton Hill resident, sculptor and critic of the city's past approach to tree cutting.

At the same time, DiPasquale has been one of the most vocal proponents of creating a tree commission to advise the department's Division of Urban Forestry as well as help the Department of Community Development in designing streetscapes that include trees in a significant way.

Driggs and other advocates want the commission to have a role in writing a new tree ordinance, among its other duties.

The proposal before the council would create a panel with nine voting members, as well as the directors of public works and community development, which agreed last spring to a memorandum of understanding on sharing information about how to manage and improve "the urban forest." None of the voting members could work for the city or any company with a contract related to trees on city property.

Contact Michael Martz at (804) 649-6964 or .