ELY – A tree assessment conducted this spring in the city of Ely identified more than half of 80 boulevard trees inspected to be at a high or moderate potential of damage to property and/or life in the next year.

S&S Tree Landscaping Specialists of St. Paul conducted the assessment in early May. City Council members discussed the results in chambers this week.

“Some of these trees are obviously overdue (for removal),” said Council member Paul Kess.

Clerk-Treasurer Harold Langowski said the average overall tree rating of the trees that were inspected was at 3.6 on a rating scale of zero to nine. “As you can see, we are on the decline, or the bottom end of that scale,” he said. “Many of them are 36 or 37 inches. They are large trees. A lot of them are growing over the curb.”

Nine trees assessed were given a “high risk” rating, and 35 trees were given a “moderate risk” rating. The rating is valid for one year.

Trees on Chapman Street, in particular, were targeted for a closer look. “Both the Tree Board and S & S came to the same conclusion,” Langowski said. “These trees should go as they do not have a lot of life to them.” He also noted that several older trees in Whiteside Park have been targeted as dangerous.

He said the assessment was good for the city and the community. “I know some (citizens) had an opportunity to discuss with the assessment team their displeasure with cutting trees or why we are not cutting down more trees. It was a good experience for everybody.”

The tree assessment report, which includes detailed spreadsheet data on the health of every tree that was inspected, is available at the City Clerk’s office.

The inspection was conducted May 4-5 on silver maple and green ash trees that are located on city property between the sidewalk and street. Certified arborists Mark Rehder and Jacob Ryg conducted the survey.

“Not much is known about the history of Ely’s boulevard silver maples,” Rehder wrote in the report. “Judging by counting the rings of previous maples that have been removed, we can estimate their age to be around 80 years old. They were probably planted because they grew quick and were readily accessible and/or cheap. There is a good chance they were brought up from the Twin Cities area. However, there appear to be native silver maples in the area and it is possible they were transplanted as saplings.”

Some of the ash trees’ diameters measured in the 40-inch range suggesting these are older trees as well, he said.

Part of the assessment included a look at the maintenance history of the trees in question.

“In Ely, maintenance has been more as a result of responding to an issue than it has been toward proper tree maintenance,” Rehder said. “Many trees in Ely have been pruned and maintained well over the years while others have undergone improper cuts, lions tailings (removing all interior branches), crown raising and a lack of removing deadwood. Still others have not been pruned in many years.”

Rehder noted that there were not nearly as many issues with the trunks of the trees as there were with the canopies and the roots. Thirteen of the 80 trees had some degree of trunk rot, mostly in association with the roots.

Nearly one-third of the inspected trees had some degree of root rot. “Much of this is a result of the trees outgrowing their rooting space and being pinched by the sidewalk or street curb, or having felt the impacts of construction,” he said.

Of the nine trees that received a “high risk” rating, he recommended seven of them be removed because of overall poor condition. The other two trees with a “high risk” rating could have large dead limbs removed to mitigate them to a “moderate risk” rating. “The question is, how many resources do you put into a tree that is on its way out versus simply removing it?”

The assessment team was surprised to see holes left by maple syrup tapping. There is a right way and a wrong to tap, he said. The right way is to use a drill bit less than ½-inch, use only three buckets on trees up to 30 inches and use no more than five buckets on trees over 30 inches.

“It has been demonstrated that drilling more holes does not correspond to more material,” he said. “Tapping has only a very small impact on the trees, even if done improperly. Tapping will not cause more deadwood in the canopy or cause root rot or large cracks or any of the other issues we saw on these trees.” He encouraged conducting an educational program on proper tapping techniques.

Rehder said that eventually the large silver maples will have to be phased out. “The healthier trees may have 30 years or so of being a good contributor to the site, but many more will have significantly less time,” he said.

“We would seriously recommend a system of cabling and bracing for some of these trees,” Rehder said. “There are some good candidates out there. It is a great way to keep the branches from moving too much to the point where they could cause the tree to fail.”

He asserted that the chance of a branch striking an individual walking on the sidewalk is low. ”There are not enough people occupying the space under the tree for any extended period of time. This would be different if the site was a zoo or a park or other high traffic area.”

Other business

In other business, the council:

•Approved resolutions for levy and assessment authority against taxable properties for delinquent assessments, water, sewer and electric accounts, as well as blight cleanup performed by the city;

•Formed a task group to study building permit and inspection fees, and asked citizens and contractors to consider being involved in the process;

•Appointed Casey Velcheff as the city’s new deputy clerk, replacing Claire Huisman who resigned from the position;

‰Approved posting internally for seven days for the Accounting Clerk position;

•Agreed to advertise to fill the vacant seat on the Planning and Zoning Commission;

•Scheduled a public hearing at 4:45 p.m. on July 21regarding an interim use permit for the Heck Epic Bike Race;

•Rescheduled the Ely Economic Development Authority meeting to 5 p.m. on July 21;

•Approved the Ely Garden Club request for a $500 donation.