[Vision2020] Cutting down trees in Friendship Square

[Jon Kimberling]

Leah & all- there have been a number of questions regarding the changes
taking place in Friendship Square. To help address some of these, I'm going
to paste below responses from city staff and council members to those who
raised the questions. 

Jon Kimberling
City Council

Dear Ms. 

Thanks for your note. I encourage you to talk with Roger Blanchard, our
arborist and parks/facilities manager, who has coordinated the discussion
and recommendations about trees in the square. Roger is out of the office
until Tuesday but can be reached by calling 883-7000.  Also, landscape
architect Laura Taylor of Hodge and Associates, the local contracting
designer for the project, would be a good source for additional information
and thought on this topic.

Have you had an opportunity to look at the plans for the Square as a whole?
I'm sure you could take a look at them at the city's engineering offices in
the Mann Building on 2nd and Jefferson. I would be glad to talk with you
about this. Give me a call either at home this weekend, 882-1280, or next
week at my office, 882-7255. Thanks again for writing.

All the best,
Linda Pall
Moscow City Council

Mr. Smith-

Regarding the removal and relocation of trees at Friendship Square, I offer
the following information:

The plan for tree removal and relocation was developed by the Downtown
Revitalization Committee, a group of citizens, downtown business owners,
elected officials, and staff working with the project consulting engineer to
develop an overall theme for the downtown area and a renewed design for
Friendship Square.   

The spruce tree was slated for relocation.  Five linden trees, four of which
were planted in locations that didn’t allow them room enough to grow to
maturity and one with a sun-scalded trunk that needed to come out to allow
for a required playground expansion and fire lane access, were slated for
removal.  The Moscow Tree Committee reviewed and approved the tree plan.

The spruce tree, which was a replacement of the original tree and was
planted about 12 years ago, has been relocated to East Gate Park.

The new plan for trees at Friendship Square allows for larger planting wells
(4’x6’) for the remaining trees, adds another linden in a vacant planting
space near the drinking fountain on Main St., and allows for more rooting
and crown space for the lindens that will remain in the square.  As the
lindens mature, they will attain a spread of 30’ to 35’, which is many times
larger than the current spacing of the trees allows.

 

The reason for the replacement of the playground is detailed below:

 

Even after learning in the mid 1990’s that the Friendship Square playground
was substandard in regard to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and
public playground safety guidelines, the City Council opted to leave the
playground as it was because of its popularity with local residents.  After
several State of Idaho safety inspections noted discrepancies and safety
violations in the City’s playgrounds, the Council responded by approving a
playground improvement and replacement plan in 2001.  Friendship Square
playground was put at the top of the list since it was the least compliant
and presented the greatest risk to the public, but replacement was delayed
to allow the City to install the new playground along with reconstruction of
the Square.  The problems with the existing playground at the Square extend
far beyond the fact that the wood is deteriorating and splintering.  The
list of safety and accessibility discrepancies is longer than space in this
email allows, but I would gladly allow you to review my copies of the laws,
standards, and guidelines that we are required to follow concerning public
playgrounds. 

 

The process for identifying a suitable replacement for the playground has
taken over two years because of the delay in reconstruction of the Square,
but should be completed by the end of June.  In January of this year a
request for proposals was sent to ten regional playground vendors; seven
proposals were received.  Of those seven, three were chosen by the
playground committee working with the Parks and Recreation Commission for
public review to identify which vendor the City would work with to come up
with a final design.  One of those vendors represented Columbia Cascade,
makers of the existing playground.  The proposals were displayed at the
Hamilton Indoor Recreation Center (HIRC) and the general public, as well as
numerous parent groups, were notified of the displays and invited to view
them, vote for their favorite, and comment on all of the proposals.  The
vendor representing Columbia Cascade was the clear choice of the public and
of the Downtown Revitalization Committee, which did an independent review of
the proposals.

The City has entered into a contract with the preferred vendor, who is
preparing drawings for public display and comment.  The drawings will be
displayed at the Farmers Market and again at the HIRC for the next few
weeks.  

I hope this information has been helpful to you in explaining the process
that has led to the redesign and construction of the Square.  I invite you
to comment on the two design alternatives for the new playground.  We hope
to have those displayed at the Farmers Market and the HIRC beginning this
Saturday.

If you need clarification on any of this information, please feel free to
contact me at 883-7098.  

 

Roger Blanchard


-----Original Message-----
From: vision2020-bounces at moscow.com [mailto:vision2020-bounces at moscow.com]
On Behalf Of Leah Andrews
Sent: Tuesday, May 31, 2005 7:27 AM
To: vision2020 at moscow.com
Subject: [Vision2020] Cutting down trees in Friendship Square

They just cut down two trees in Friendship Square at this morning. Does 
anybody know if that is part of the remodel plan, and why?
-Leah


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