Avella: Unsafe trees need removal, now

From PIX11:

Queens State Senator Tony Avella is calling on the Parks Department to respond to hundreds of constituent complaints about dangerous city trees in front of their homes.

Avella said he conducted a tree survey in February, and received 700 responses from homeowners claiming dead trees or damaged sidewalks. He then submitted 700 complaints to the Parks Department. Of those complaints, Avella said about 600 of them have been logged with the 311 system. He said only about 20 have resulted in tree removals.

"Homeowners said they're scared for the safety of their family and their property," said Avella.

Avella said the complaints remain largely unanswered because he said the Parks Department is understaffed and underfunded. "I know at least one homeowner is waiting over a year for a dead tree to be removed," said Avella.

Area may have been hit with a tornado

From CBS 2:

Queens residents are waking up to storm damage Friday after severe weather moved through the area.

After 10 p.m. Thursday, the National Weather Service issued a tornado warning for Queens, the Bronx and northern Nassau County and some College Point residents reported seeing funnel clouds, CBS2’s Jenna DeAngelis reported.

It’s still not clear if a tornado did in fact touch down, but severe thunderstorms did roll through the area, knocking down trees and power lines.

A two-mile stretch of College Point to Whitestone took the brunt of the damage, however there have reports elsewhere. In Jackson Heights, pictures of downed trees were taken near 86th Street and Roosevelt Avenue.

Whitestone sidewalk & car damage resolved

From CBS 2:

It was a beyond welcoming sight in front of the Maddalena-Vigliotti home in Whitestone, Queens — city crews finally repairing the damaged sidewalk.

“If it wasn’t for you and your covering this story, nothing would’ve gotten done,” Queens resident Anna Maddalena told CBS2’s Andrea Grymes.

Two weeks ago, CBS2 reported multiple locations across Queens, where city-owned trees uprooted during storms back in March. The city had cleared the trees, but months later still hadn’t fixed the sidewalks.

This week, after CBS2’s reports, repairs are finally being made.

For this family, the sidewalk was not the only thing destroyed when the tree came down. They’re still looking for answers from the city about one of their cars.

The 2008 red Mazda had been parked on the street in front of the house, but when the tree collapsed, the car was totaled under the weight of the limbs.

Maddalena says they had collision insurance but not comprehensive coverage, which would’ve covered the damage.

So she filed a claim with the city comptroller’s office in May. She got a letter back saying if the office is unable to resolve the claim, “any lawsuit against the city must be started within one year and 90 from the date of occurrence.”

Maddalena says she then called numerous times, trying to figure out what she’s supposed to do with the car, as it sits in the driveway.

So on Friday, CBS2 reached out to the comptroller’s office and they quickly responded.

Maddalena says she got a call from the division chief, who apologized several times and promised someone would come out and assess the car by Monday. After that, they can finally get rid of it.

Damaged sidewalks remain after 4 months

From CBS 2:

The huge slabs of concrete look like they belong at a construction site. Instead, the slabs are at the corner of 32nd Avenue and 168th Street in North Flushing.

Residents say the sidewalk has been destroyed since March when the city removed the trees damaged by winter storms, but never fixed the sidewalk.

Evolution of a Queens street corner

147th Street and Delaware Avenue, Flushing

NY Post. City Demands Landlord Pay.

"Amazing isn't it, the inconsistency and selectivity by this mayoral agency in pursuing who damages and harms public street trees, who gets fined for those damages and the "special groups" like developers here in Queens that astonishingly get away with their nefarious tree damaging behavior without any noticeable summonsing or jail time - even when New York's Greenest have been alerted about it." - anonymous

Brooklyn developer heavily fined for arboricide

From CBS 2:

The city is demanding more than $176,000 from a Brooklyn developer accused of committing arborcide – the act of killing a tree.

As WCBS 880’s Mike Smeltz reported, city estimates say the pin oak tree that stood in front of 299 South 4th St. in Williamsburg had been there for at least 75 years and possibly up to 100 years.

An inspector found it with more than a dozen two-inch deep holes drilled into hits base that left the crown of the tree 90 percent dead.

Now the city believes the developer, Noah Amos – or someone acting on behalf of Amos – was the one who caused damage to the tree.

City unleashes beestorm in Kew Gardens

From DNA Info:

Swarming wasps stung several Kew Gardens residents after city workers cut down a tree housing their nest — with city officials telling concerned locals they won't remove the ornery insects because they are "an important part of nature."

The tree, on Kew Gardens Road near 82nd Road near P.S. 99, was removed by the Parks Department on Sept. 7 "due to poor health," after a resident asked the agency to inspect it, the department said.

The nest was left in the stump, with someone placing a traffic cone there with a sign reading, "Danger Bees Ahead.”

The insects, which experts said are yellow jackets, have become aggressive and started attacking passersby, residents said.

The NYPD referred DNAinfo New York to a city website titled "Bees or Wasps Complaint," which noted that the city "does not accept requests to eliminate bees or wasps from residential, commercial, or public property."

Meghan Lalor, a spokeswoman for the Parks Department, confirmed that regulation and noted that "these creatures are an important part of nature, so the City will not destroy them."

Flushing High School has some poorly installed trees

The QC passed by Flushing High a few days ago and noticed the street trees there were not looking well.

So we contacted a tree expert.

"Greetings.

These Bald Cypress (Taxodium distichum) street trees have been in declining health for well over a decade. For the years that they've resided here they should be healthy and of incredible size but they are not.

Many factors may be behind their poor health but I suspect that the tree health problems started at the time of installation by Parks as either inferior tree stock from the tree nursery (trees that we refer to as culls b/c the Forester did not bother to inspect the trees for quality in advance of their arrival to the job site), or an improper placement into the planting hole by the landscape contractors.

Improper installation? How can that be?

There's far more of the tree installation process than one imagines. We take tree planting for granted and its goes far beyond just simply digging a hole and rolling in the tree. Yet throughout the 7 year PLaNYC Million Tree program, it was observed that Parks Forestry contractors repeatedly installed thousands of street trees improperly. That is b/c the daily inspections for compliance to the Parks Forestry tree planting specifications would have taken them away from other important tasks. Nothing is more important in the tree installation process than making sure the trees are installed properly. And we as recipients of a NYC tree planting program should demand more accountability on the return of the tree installation investment.

As an aside find attached NYC DPR Tree Map information and the attached pdf of a cypress tree and the benefits that it should provide.

https://tree-map.nycgovparks.org/#treeinfo-4141725

https://sma.memberclicks.net/assets/documents/CTs_Jan_Baldcypress.pdf

Just to let you know that the Kissena Park Civic general meeting is scheduled for April 6 7PM at Marys Nativity Parish Center, NWC of Parsons and Jasmine.

Guest speaker will be DEP Green Infrastructure people speaking on the bioswales issues.

Cheers."

- Carsten W. Glaeser

Crappy building materials can't withstand wind

From DNA Info:

Strong winds tore pieces of the facade off a luxury building that opened to renters just three years ago on Fourth Avenue and Sixth Street on Monday afternoon, the FDNY said.

Several FDNY companies responded to a 2:56 p.m. report of "Styrofoam-like debris" raining down from 278 Sixth St., which is right next door to FDNY Engine Company 239's firehouse, an FDNY spokesman said.

In addition, a Fresh Meadows gas station collapsed and trees came down:

Bioswale blunder in Maspeth

From CBS 2:

A city project intended to help the environment has a Queens resident upset over the destruction it has caused in front of her home.

As CBS2’s Valerie Castro reported, the project has cost the woman thousands of dollars.

“They destroyed the concrete,” said Jeanette Romano of Maspeth. “Destroyed it, destroyed it.”

Romano is not happy about the city’s recent installment of a rain garden in her sidewalk – a sidewalk she said she has paid to repair before.

“We got a notice to fix the sidewalk, which we did,” Romano said. “A year later, they came and broke it up to put a tree in, cracking all the sidewalk.”

Romano said after the tree was installed, she paid more money to repair the damage and spruce up the spot with concrete bricks.

As for the total cost, Romano said, “I can’t even tell you – thousands.”

A year later, the bricks were torn out for the rain garden, which will be made up of stones, soil and plants.

“It’s terrible. It’s absolutely terrible,” Romano said. “Every time I come out, I get very anxious and upset about this.”

The rain garden, or bioswale, on Romano’s block is one of hundreds installed across the city by the Department of Environmental Protection to keep dirty runoff water out of sewers and protect natural waterways.

The DEP said residents are given notice when a bioswale is going in, but it is not something a resident can choose to avoid.

The sad demise of a Ridgewood street tree

You may recall back in 2013 when a school building under construction in Ridgewood resulted in the damage of the street trees around its perimeter. Well it appears that the destruction of one of the trees was completed this week.

I'm sure the stump will stay for quite some time. In fact I wouldn't be surprised if they just removed it and filled in the tree pit.

Taxpayer money planted it, helped destroy it and took it away.

Ciafone canopy encroaches on tree pit

Here we are at "199 Green Court" in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. That familiar sign indicates that this is a John Ciafone building.

And one of his classic canopies is in full bloom here.

And it's anchored in an interesting location.

That's right, the post likely drills right down into a tree root because the genius decided that the presence of a public street tree pit should not be a deterrent to jazzing up his private property.

This just oozes class!

What can be done?

"I'm writing on behalf of my Mother.

After numerous complaints with NYC since 1959 when my parents bought their house in Queens Village, in 2006 finally the tree in front of their home was removed.

The problem since then has been no curb, a hole & damaged sidewalk which was caused by the removal.

Making a dangerous & unsanitary condition worse, there is a nursing home at the top of the block. Private Sanitation picks up their garbage, after the garbage is removed, they hose down the area to remove any waste that might have leaked, which in theory is great, but the run off produces a pond/pool in the hole in front of the house. This occurs when it rains too.

Aside from the smell, it is extremely unsanitary, unsafe and unsightly.

In April 2016, I contacted Senator Tony Avella's office, who acted quickly on our behalf and sent 3 letters on April 14th to:

1) Hon Polly Trottenberg Commissioner Dept of Transportation.....
2) Hon Mary Travis Bassett,MD Commissioner Dept of Health.....
3) Hon Mitchell Silver Commissioner of Dept of Parks.

I waited for a reply, which never came.

I contacted Senator Avella again, and he sent follow up letters to each them on June 21, 2016.

On July 7, 2016 I received a letter from Senator Avella.

REPLY FROM DOT:

The DOT informed him they will inspect the curb. The location will be added to the curb list for repair on a future curb only contract. At this time they are awaiting a curb contract. However, DOT at that time will also inspect the sidewalk for any defects.

If I understand correctly, nothing will get inspected/done until they get a contract.

To date, there has been no reply from The Dept of Health or The Dept of Parks.

Senator Avella has done all he can do.

Can you help?" - anonymous

Francis Lewis tree massacre

"Why are old growth city owned curb trees being cut down near Francis Lewis & Crocheron?

Those trees are big...must have been there since the 1950s!

Couldn't they have just trimmed them?" - The Flushing Phantom

Street tree feeling hollow

Does being able to see through a tree branch sound like "routine" pruning is needed? This is the second time I've reported it - I guess they're waiting for it to snap and hit someone or something.

Date Submitted: 03/31/16 10:33:04 AM
Request Type: Damaged Tree
Details: Tree Alive - in Poor Condition

Your Service Request was closed.

The Department of Parks and Recreation visited the location but could not find the tree condition you reported.

REPORTED CONDITION INSPECTED ON 4/1/16, CONDITION UNFOUNDED. TREE WAS FOUND TO BE IN GOOD CONDITION AND REQUIRE ROUTINE BLOCK PRUNING VIA CITY CONTRACTOR.

Date Submitted: 07/27/15 4:42:11 PM
Request Type: Damaged Tree
Details: Branch Cracked and Will Fall

Your Service Request was closed.

The condition was inspected and it was determined that no work order was necessary. The condition will not be inspected again for at least 90 days.

More Jamaica issues to add to the pile

From Cleanup Jamaica Queens:

Yeah, we just got the Queens International Night Market on Saturdays thru October and we have some development happening and in the works, so the future for Jamaica is 50-50 maybe, but the present is one big heap of garbage shit.

Coming back from a bike ride in nice, clean, civilized Long Beach, I encountered all this shit from the LIRR Sutphin Station and it AIN'T PRETTY.

Arboricide in Whitestone

From the Queens Chronicle:

Rich Yanniti drives the Q15A bus along 10th Avenue in Whitestone and recently noticed the fallen trees along his route. He and at least one neighbor are displeased to say the least.

Both were planted this spring as part of the city’s MillionTreesNYC initiative and their posts still stood this week. Their tags still indicated that they were linden redmonds, but the lines beneath the words “tree cared for by” were blank. And the trees were felled.

The cuts were smooth, indicating the intentional work of a saw blade.

One was sawed down about a month ago, Yanniti believes, and the other one was slain more recently, around Aug. 6.

Both were still in place in front of 151-45 10th Ave. as of last Sunday afternoon.

He said he also reported damage to a third, more mature tree around the corner, which appears to have an incision around the trunk, but still stands.

Yanniti reported the destruction to the city Parks Department.

Close call in Douglaston

100-year old felled tree may return to Astoria

DNA Info

From DNA Info:

A century-old tree that was chopped down by city workers this spring to the dismay of local residents could turn over a new leaf.

An arborist is using a salvaged piece of the massive American Elm — which had grown on 34th Street for decades before it was cut down by the Parks Department in March — to try to clone the tree, which was beloved by neighbors on the block.

Residents had watched in horror three months ago as workers cut down the tree, which the Parks Department said had begun to show signs of decay.

Anna Jutis, who's lived on the block for more than 40 years, kept several pieces of the tree that were left behind as mementos — including a large section of a branch, which she put in her backyard.

Jutis was surprised, she said, when she noticed the piece begin to sprout new branches and bright green leaves a few weeks ago.

"Suddenly we noticed a little branch, and then gradually longer and longer, and more, more all around," said Jutis, a retired paraprofessional. "I was so happy. That tree did not die. That tree survived."

A neighbor who learned of the tree's re-birth contacted David McMaster of Bartlett Tree Experts, who came and took cuttings from the Elm on Monday afternoon and will use them to try and grow clones of the original tree.

"It's going to have 100 percent DNA of the original plant," he said. "To try and get 100 percent of the real tree back to them."

McMaster will bring the 15 to 20 cuttings he took to the greenhouse at John Bowne High School in Flushing, where he and students in the agriculture program will attempt to get them to grow roots by dipping them in a "root generating hormone" and planting them in perlite and water.

No way to treat trees

Sonny's Auto Repair at 106-12 Atlantic Avenue in Ozone Park has been a bad neighbor since the day they moved in several years ago: sickening paint fumes, illegal parking, noise... Whatever they could do to be inconsiderate to their neighbors, they've done it.

Now they're being mean to the trees. On the tree closest to their shop they've used at least a bolts to attach a sign which reads "do not park on sidewalk". The irony being that they do this all the time themselves!

There was a healthy tree near the 106 Street corner that was taken down earlier this year. Rather than pay a few bucks to have the stump ground out, they chose to paint it yellow.

I have contacted 311 about this. But whether the city does something to correct the matter has yet to be seen. In the meantime, I thought that this might be of interest to your readers.

Rich Parkwood