On Friday, September 29, the Montrose TIRZ issued a Project Update Memo with an attached a 22-page “Project Update – Existing and Proposed Trees” which seemed to deliver reassuring news about the plan and changes to save more trees. At first we breathed a sigh of relief reading that “No healthy, mature live oak trees will be removed or replaced.” This quote has been splashed across the news and repeated without question by many of our elected officials.
But is it TRUE? Has TIRZ changed its design to save more trees? The answer is a resounding NO!
3 MORE ORDINANCE PROTECTED TREES ARE BEING CUT DOWN
The new TIRZ memo shows an increase in the number of city-ordinance protected trees that will be taken down in segment 1 between Allen Pkwy and W. Clay. At the September 18 meeting it was 50, now it is 53.
57 EXISTING TREES ARE STILL BEING LOST, INCLUDING 27 CITY-PROTECTED LIVE OAKS!
The report directly contradicts the promise that “NO HEALTHY MATURE LIVE OAKS WILL BE REMOVED OR REPLACED”. The 22-page report documents that 27 Live Oaks and 2 Post Oaks will come down because they are “not optimally located for the pedestrian sidewalk”, “conflict with the shared use path”, or because the plans for the sidewalk “will likely irrevocable impact” them.
In short, TIRZ has not made a single change to their design since September 18 in an attempt to save more existing trees. How disheartening that TIRZ has made so little effort to actually incorporate the community’s overwhelming outcry that this project is unacceptable.
· Does the new plan save more ordinance-protected trees? NO
· Does the new plan include added irrigation for any new saplings? NO
· Does the new plan consider alternative materials besides concrete? NO
In the attached, we provide details on the many contradictions and the falsely reassuring statement made in the Montrose TIRZ Project Update Memo. We also ask some important questions which are not addressed in their plans.
We demand an immediate pause to this project until there is sufficient time for true community input and most importantly, time to genuinely incorporate change to the design to preserve the trees.
Save Montrose Live Oaks
A coalition of concerned citizens
Response to Montrose Blvd Project Update Memo – Sept 2023
Minimal changes to trees lost, with an increase in the city-protected count
The design as described in the update memo reflects the exact same plan we saw on September 18th with minor corrections to the count of trees coming down.
9/18 Phase I Project Plan as displayed at the Open House showed:
- 50 city ordinance-protected trees
- 11 other trees. (total 61)
9/30 Project Update Memo shows:
- 53 city ordinance-protected trees
- 4 other trees. (total 57)
Impact to healthy mature oak trees: Significant contradictions in the Update Memo
In terms of oak trees specifically, the Executive Summary states on Page 1 that “NO HEALTHY, MATURE LIVE OAKS TREES WILL BE REMOVED OR REPLACED.” But if you read further, you find multiple direct contradictions to that statement:
1. On Page 6: From West Dallas to West Clay, east side, they report 13 ordinance protected Live Oak trees to be removed:
· One 8-inch caliper Live Oak tree
· Twelve 10-inch to 19-inch caliper Live Oak trees
The reason given for taking down these trees is that they “conflict with the shared use path.”
2. On Page 7: From West Dallas to West Clay, west side, they report 13 additional ordinance protected Live Oak trees to be removed:
· Nine 3-inch to 6-inch caliper Live Oak trees
· Four 10-inch to 12-inch caliper Live Oak trees
The reason given for taking down these trees is that they “are not optimally located for the pedestrian sidewalk.” Replacement trees are to be planted “without as much risk to damaging the sidewalk.”
3. On Page 9: From Allen Parkway to West Dallas, west side, they report 3 city ordinance-protected Post oak trees to be removed. One is noted in the report as being unhealthy so we only count two of them here:
· Two 25-inch to 26-inch caliper Post Oak trees
These enormous oaks are coming down because “The project improvements, the sidewalk in particular, will likely irrecoverably impact these trees.”
What about the 14 Live Oaks in the median which will be preserved?
The 14 city-protected mature Live Oaks in the median which the Update Memo boasts about being preserved were never in the tree removal count to begin with. This is nothing new. Committing to save trees in the medians means nothing once the project continues from Westheimer to US 59 because there are no medians there. All of the giant oak trees in that segment of Montrose are not optimally located for the planned 10’ sidewalk zones.
Summary of impact to oak trees
As detailed above, according to the TIRZ’s Project Update Memo, at least 29 healthy Oaks (27 Live Oaks, 2 Post Oaks, all currently under ordinance protection) will be removed just in Phase1 of this project. Not because they are unhealthy, but because they conflict with or will be damaged by the current plans for the sidewalk. This is according to the TIRZ memo itself.
Additional concerns and questions
We continue to have other questions and concerns which this Update Memo either fails to answer or in fact confirms our worries:
- On Pages 2 and 8 the Update Memo clearly states that replacement trees “will not be irrigated.” What is the plan to keep these young, newly planted trees alive?
- TIRZ boasts a “community-driven process” and states that “feedback will be incorporated into the project design” (p. 2). But what changes have been made to the TIRZ plan incorporating feedback submitted since the 9/18 open house? How many additional trees have been spared as a result of that public feedback?
- How will the Montrose TIRZ approach phases 2 and 3 differently, based on community feedback, to save more trees?
- TIRZ claims that “the existing legacy oaks in the median will all be preserved” (p. 1). There are no medians south of Westheimer to U.S. 59. Will any of the existing trees on the sides of the street be saved in that stretch?
- What alternative designs were considered to address the pedestrian safety concerns? How do 10-foot-wide sidewalk zones all the way down the sides of Montrose to US 59 improve the safety of crossing Montrose at Clay where the Wharton school children cross today?
- What consideration was given to the carbon and air quality impact of removing this many mature trees?
- How does the current plan “maintain a shaded pedestrian realm” (cover letter, paragraph 5)? How many years does the TIRZ expect it will take for replacement trees to mature enough to match the existing shade canopy we enjoy today?