The NDHA has received enquiries as to why the dead trees in the centre medians and in the boulevards along our roadways have not been removed and replaced… here is the answer:
The NDHA, and by extension our landscaping contractor ULS, is not allowed to prune, remove or replace any of the trees that are adjacent to the roadways in the community. This is a City bylaw and is also noted within our Lanscaping Agreement with the City of Calgary.
The NDHA encourages residents of Discovery Ridge to call the City at 311 to request attention to the trees along these roadway areas if and when required – the more complaints the City recieves, the sooner the area will be attended to. The NDHA does monitor and make requests as well, but our voice still counts as a single complaint in the eyes of the City, so your voice matters! Please call in.
If the problem tree is a hazard (it is leaning, broken, interfering with the safe passage of vehicles, etc.) it is important to indicate this to the 311 Operator as the request will be deemed an emergency and will be attended to immediately.
In April, the City did respond to a request by the NDHA to eliminate the dead trees along Discovery Ridge Boulevard, with special attention paid to the medians west of Cornerstone Square. Several trees were deemed to “possibly have life” and were left in place, however. Some of these in fact did not survive the winter and need to be removed, as do several others along the entire length of the boulevard. The NDHA has requested that the City return to deal with these as soon as possible.
Please note that once a tree is removed, replacement of it goes into a “queue” that normally takes two years to get to the front of. The weather event referred to as “Snowtember 2014” was devastating to Calgary’s tree canopy and has severely interrupted the City’s regular tree replacement program. The NDHA is doing it’s best to work with the City to move us up the line as fast as possible.
If you have concerns about trees which are in the parkspace not adjacent to roadways, please do not hesiate to contact the NDHA.