City Trees is a premier publication focused on urban + community forestry. In each issue, you’ll learn how to best manage the trees in your community and more!
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1472807
about utility pruning from dealing with shade tree com- missions and other urban foresters weren't necessarily indicative of what the general public felt, and that my best success would come from listening to the entire range of stakeholder views I could discover in the area. I got to know the municipal and county foresters in my territory, along with parks directors, environmental protection personnel, railroad representatives, public works directors, community foresters, watershed man- agers—anybody who had a stake or vested interest in the urban forest and was willing to talk to me. This added a considerable amount of time and effort to planning line clearance work, but it saved even more trouble in the end. The effect was profound. Local urban foresters recognized the extent I'd gone to ensure that their stakeholders were consulted. They received fewer calls from residents and municipal employees asking or complaining about our work, making their job easier. We were able to team up on trees we both wanted work on, saving both of us time and money we'd have spent on separate visits. I developed strong working relation- ships with the natural resource managers in my area and adapted my management to each community's respective work culture as much as I could. This built trust, made it easier to work together, and smoothed tensions when complex or delicate situations arose. HOW FORESTERS OVERLAP Municipal arborists may manage their urban forests for equitable distribution of environmental bene- fits, species and age diversity, and compatibility with the built environment. Utility foresters may manage their urban forests for low-growing (compatible) species, compatibility with the built environment, and planning maintenance to maximize value for the ratepayer. Urban natural area managers may manage their urban forests for invasive species miti- gation, ecological health, and watershed protection. Community foresters may manage their urban forests for equitable distribution of environmental benefits, equitable distribution of green spaces for recreation, and quality of life for underserved neighborhoods. Some of these goals are the same, some may differ in their order or priority, and some directly conflict. The best way to prevent conflict, tension, and the for- mation of silos is to continuously work together so all overlapping natural resource managers understand the priorities of the others, where those priorities come from, and which of their stakeholders overlap. This base understanding provides us with a starting point for com- promise, finding shared goals, and working together. Thoughtful landscape architecture creates high-value green spaces that blend access with beauty. This is exemplified with these purple-l af European beeches (Fagus sylvatica Atropurpurea Group) in Franklin D. Roosevelt Four Freedoms State Park in Manhattan, New York City. 22 CityTREES