Tree News

Today I was talking to Harefoot, a daily reader of Tree News. He was commenting on how much he enjoyed reading the articles, but he had one concern. This is how the conversation went: "I check your blog every day, but I've been a bit bored with it lately." Really? Do you want more content...more posts...maybe another Tree Care Handbook? "No. I'm bored from that insipid map of Atlanta quadrants." Now it is true that the Arborist Quadrant Map does not exactly meet the quality control guidelines of Tree News. It is also true that this graphic element is a bit too dry for us drought-weary Georgians. But the map does clearly and succinctly illustrate the bold numbers 1, 2, 3 and 4. Understand that Harefoot does not live in Atlanta and does not fully appreciate how exciting the organizational structure of the City Arborist Quadrants can be. So I politley laughed, gave an accepting nod, and quickly changed the subject.

The Arborist Division of the Atlanta City Government regularly updates a list of their city Arborists. There are four municipal field personnel, each responsible for a quadrant. They are: Area 1: Tom Coffin 404.330.6077 Area 2: Janell Bazile 404.330.6071 Area 3: Paul Lewkowicz 404.330.6882 Area 4: Michael Franklin 404.330.6079 For final inspections, contact Stanley Domengeaux 404.546.1047 The Arborist Division is esponsible for reviewing and approving all building permits and tree removal plans.

On June 17, The Atlanta City Council made a striking modification the City's tree ordinance. Property owners will now be allowed to remove any tree that is growing within 5 feet of a house or duplex, without recompense. A permit will still be required from the City Arborist Division prior to removal, and no other tree may be removed under the same provision for 5 years. Furthermore, the exemption does not apply if the tree contributes 10 percent or more of the total tree canopy over the lot.