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May 20 Garden Party Launches Tree Program |
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Written by Jeff Radford
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Monday, 07 May 2007 |
Corrales’ Landmark Tree program will be launched at a garden party at
the home of Penny and Bill Perkins Sunday, May 20, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Those gardens were featured in the full-color centerfold of
Corrales Comment’s March 24 Garden and Landscape special issue.
A presentation on the Village of Corrales’ landmark tree program will be given, and nomination forms will be available.
Parking and access to the garden are available from Walden Road, 1.5
miles north of the Corrales Post Office along Corrales Road. Signs will
indicate turns.
Brochures explaining the program can be obtained at the Village
Office, Corrales Library, the Visitors’ Center at the front of the old
fire station, Village Mercantile, Corrales Comment and other locations
around the village.
Over the years, Corraleños have prized and protected their trees,
particularly the stately cottonwoods and bountiful apples, but until
last year, no official means were in place to designate trees felt to
be especially significant for Corrales’ scenic and cultural environment.
“Corrales has one of the first tree ordinances in New Mexico,” said
tree committee chairwoman Katy Eagan-Deprez. “The idea is to preserve
certain stately trees that we have in our village from destruction… a
way to take a second look at it in case there’s a zoning issue where we
can urge ‘okay, let’s drive around this tree rather than take it down.’”
The new “Landmark Tree Preservation” brochure explains the origin of
the program this way. “Corrales’ cottonwoods need our protection, as do
other species of now-mature fruit, nut and shade trees that were
planted by the early farmers of the village.
“The removal of a large, beautiful, and well-known valley cottonwood at
the southern entrance to the village, to accommodate road-widening for
a commercial enterprise, acted as a trigger for the Village
Council to protect Corrales’ trees.
“The Tree Preservation Ordinance (No. 06-01) was passed on April 11,
2006. The stated purpose of the ordinance is “to enhance and preserve
the rural character, environmental and aesthetic qualities, and land
values in the Village of Corrales by providing for the nomination,
designation and protection of particularly significant trees, herein
designated as landmark trees, either on public property or, with the
consent of the owner, on private property.”
That resolution led to appointment of the Corrales Tree Preservation
Advisory Committee which has set out the procedures and guidelines for
the program.
The brochure explains that to qualify as a “landmark tree,” it must meet at least one of these criteria:
• exceptional size for the species;
• old age for the species;
• distinctive and/or exemplary form;
• historical significance; or
• position as a defining feature in the village landscape.
The nomination process, which can be initiated by anyone, involves
filling out a nomination form indicating the tree’s location,
description and qualifications, and notarized signatures of the owners
of the tree or property over which it spreads. Documents can be
notarized at the Village Office.
The submission should be accompanied by a photograph of the tree
and payment of a $20 processing fee (used to support the tree
program).
Trees may be on public or private land, including ditch banks owned by the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District.
“Once a tree is designated as a Landmark Tree, it is protected by
Village ordinance from removal, from excessive pruning, and from damage
to the root system,” the brochure explains. “Normal pruning on private
property is permitted. Requests for removal shall be subject to
approval by the Village Planning and Zoning Board.”
A website has been created for the Landmark Tree program: www.corralestrees.org. Nominating forms can be down-loaded there.
Several trees have already been nominated. They include the cottonwood
around which Dixon Road deviates between Corrales Road and the Corrales
Interior Drain.
Among those suggested as qualifying for designation are:
• a cottonwood along Camino Campo near the intersection with Desert Willow;
• a tall cottonwood on the land of John and Carmen Tittmann on Corrales Road just north of Sagebrush Drive;
• a tree considered “the biggest cottonwood” in Corrales at the intersection of West Meadowlark and the Corrales Acequia;
• a tree along Loma Larga near Tenorio Road; and
• the “DK” tree (for Dee Klenck) at the corner of Corrales Road and Mira Sol.
Do you have a favorite tree, or one you know to be of special
significance, that’s not on the list above? Why not explore nominating
it as a “Landmark Tree?”
The Corrales Tree Preservation Advisory Committee consists of Katy
Eagan-Deprez, chairwoman; Penny Perkins; Jill Witt, Sue Hallgarth and
Wayne Maes.
“We tried to make the nominating process pretty simple, and for trees
on public property it is quite straight-forward,” Eagan-Deprez said.
A potential “landmark tree” doesn’t have to be especially large,
she noted. “It doesn’t have to be a huge, ancient tree. It may be its
location in the village that makes it important, or its significance
might be from a story of something that happened in the village.”
Perkins explained how the program may help protect trees in the years
ahead. “After a tree is designated, it is supposed to be shown on a
plat for the land, and any site development plan for that property has
to show the status of that tree, and that status will continue even if
the property is sold.”
Designated trees will have plaques posted so that future property
owners, work crews and the general public will be aware of their
special status. |
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