With BWL-Homeowner Tensions Increasing, City Council to Consider Resolution in Support of Trees

As BWL’s cutting, and cutting down, of trees appears to be picking up in the old-growth neighborhoods of East Lansing, City Council is set on Tuesday night to vote on a resolution in support of the city’s trees. Meanwhile, the red-and-white yard signs that carry a legal warning to BWL are showing up in greater numbers around the city.

Glencairn resident Richard Crittenden, who had the yard signs produced, says he has distributed approximately 70 of the 100 signs he ordered, and because requests are picking up in pace, he is putting in another order. (To read more about the yard signs, click here.) Crittenden says he thinks the pace is picking up because more and more East Lansing residents are receiving letters from BWL indicating they are planning to do “vegetation management” on those homeowners’ properties. The letters are undated but say cutting will begin in October.

The East Lansing Historic District Commission has been discussing ways to provide protection for the tree canopy not only in the Historic Districts, but also in other old-growth sections of the City. In response to a request sent up by the Historic District Commission, City Council on Tuesday (October 21) will vote on whether to resolve that “the City of East Lansing will continue to enforce existing policies to protect trees throughout the City and investigate additional protections for the City’s tree canopy.”

The resolution as drafted refers to the City’s Green Building Policy, its status as a Tree City, and to the importance of trees as “part of the fabric of East Lansing’s neighborhoods.” The resolution also “recognizes that tree trimming is necessary for proper management of the urban forest, but that this trimming must be done in an appropriate manner so as not change the character of the neighborhoods.”

Some residents in Glencairn and Oakwood, two neighborhoods early on BWL’s vegetation management schedule, are questioning why they are being subject to what they see as aggressive and unusual attention. BWL Commissioner Sandra Zerkle’s statement to the Lansing State Journal in August led to the perception that Glencairn and Oakwood are being subject to “revenge cutting.”

Zerkle told the Lansing State Journal, “These are the same people who really, really, really beat us up the first week of the storm [saying] their power was out and where were we and why weren’t we out here and why were these trees falling down and why hadn’t somebody trimmed them before.” BWL representatives have strongly denied “revenge cutting,” indicating that Glencairn and Oakwood are particularly vulnerable because they have so many trees, near wires, that have gone unmanaged for many years. A number of the trees cut or cut down by BWL have predated the utility, which was founded in 1885.

Asked why BWL has not trimmed the trees at the East Lansing (Whitehills) home of BWL General Manager Peter Lark, BWL says Lark's home is “on the schedule.”

BWL provides information about their tree trimming at this page: https://www.lbwl.com/vegetation.aspx

Citizens who wish to speak to the resolution being considered by City Council (or on any other matter) should plan to arrive early to Tuesday’s meeting as Public Comment occurs at the beginning. The meeting begins at 7 pm on Tuesday, October 21, at the courtroom of City Hall.

See an ELi update on this issue HERE.

Disclosure: Alice Dreger lives in the Oakwood neighborhood and the trees of her immediate neighbors are affected by BWL's cutting program. Her spouse, Aron Sousa, serves on the Historic District Commission and has advocated for historic tree protection in that venue.

ELi provides a unique mix of high-quality, community-based, nonpartisan, factual, opinion-free reporting about East Lansing that you won’t find anywhere else! But it depends on tax-deductible reader donations to function! If you believe in ELi's mission of providing editorial-free high-quality news of the people, by the people, and for the people of East Lansing, donate easily online to support us. You can also donate by check. Thank you in joining your neighbors in supporting ELi as a critical resource for the people of East Lansing!