Flint Township View

Tree plan for DDA district hits snag




BURTON — The Downtown Development Authority’s plan to purchase 10 new trees for the downtown district along S. Saginaw Street has hit a roadblock.

After approving the purchase and installation of 10 trees from Baldwin Tree Farm, 2232 Baldwin Rd., in Fenton, on Sept. 19 at a cost of $7,780, the tree farm has now backed out of the agreement.

Joey Richvalsky, chairman of the Burton DDA, said after Consumers Energy came along and determined where all the fiber optic and utility lines were located underground in the business district, Baldwin Tree Farm said it would not be able to plant the trees due to potential liability.

“We can still buy the trees from them,” he said. “But we will have to find someone else to plant them.”

Richvalsky said he was in support of still buying the trees from the farm, because they are locally grown and the DDA had been given a good price.

But DDA member Steve Coates said, in his opinion, Baldwin Tree Farm should refund the money the DDA paid for installation of the trees and the board could look elsewhere – possibly even abandoning the idea of planting new trees in the DDA district.

“Maybe we shouldn’t be in the tree business,” said Coates, echoing earlier comments at a prior meeting by DDA member Neil Martz. “Obviously, in my opinion, if they back off with the planting because of the fiber optics and other stuff, we’re going to have the same problem with other people.”

Richvalsky said the DDA has never had this problem before, and he thinks it is due to the lateness of the season. He said he thinks asking them to plant in the spring might make for different results.

“We’re in the tree business, like it or not,” said Richvalsky. “Do you know how much it would cost to remove all the trees?”

The DDA has been looking at replacing trees along S. Saginaw Street for several months after noticing many trees have been damaged or destroyed by accidents and other causes.

The purchase of the 10 trees was the first of what DDA members had hoped would be several plantings over upcoming years.

Richvalsky said he would get on the return of the payment the already made by the DDA and could look at other options at coming meetings.