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March 14, 2008
City To Cut Excess Green
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| Image: Probably not the kind of pruning we'll see
in Bidwell Park. Large oaks and sycamores will be getting a hair cut in Bidwell Park starting on Monday. I wanted to let people know so nobody freaks out and files some kind of CEQA lawsuit. That sort of thing can happen here in Chico if the wind blows a little too hard. Here is part of the city news item... The City’s contractor, Fallen Leaf Tree Service, will be pruning the large oak and sycamore trees overhanging South Park Drive in Lower Bidwell Park starting on Monday, March 17, 2008. The contractor will be removing dead branches and doing some light thinning in the outer canopy as a safety measure and to ensure the health of the trees. The contractor will also be removing some of the smaller trees and vines along the edge of South Park Drive that are encroaching into the pedestrian and bicycle paths. No large trees are being removed or topped under this contract. I certainly hope Chico's West Side and East Side tree gangs are not involved in this senseless sylvan slaughter (see previous post for reference and joyous return to the Golden Age of CI). That would be frightful. All kidding aside I watched this company trim trees in Caper Acres last summer. They work in the tallest trees in the park using ropes and slings. Keep an eye out for them because it is pretty impressive work. I think I'll go watch them on St. Paddy's day. Normally I would drink green beer and expose myself in exchange for Mardi Gras beads. I do that even when it's not an Irish holiday. Unfortunately, I celebrated so hard after finishing the Sherwood Forest course that I think I can still taste the beer. No... watching trees get trimmed is more my speed right now. Below is a photo of city workers doing similar work in Lost Park (I've posted this before). The contractors worked quite a bit higher than this worker when I saw them, but this is still pretty impressive. |
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| Spotlight: Finance Committee has a say Jenn Klein gets comments from Councilors Gruendl, Wahl, and Flynn on the recent survey. All of the comments are kind of funny to me. Gruendl says the survey changed his mind on the Fire Department responding to paramedic calls. Currently the Fire Department mirrors private ambulance services. Quite often they drive to an emergency, see the ambulance there and drive back to the station. Public misunderstanding of who provides medical emergency service has little to do with budget cutting methods. Wahl makes some good points about some of the areas where the public supported cuts, and said the survey was a waste of money. One example he gives is that the public might support cutting anti-graffiti efforts because the efforts are successful and graffiti has already been minimized. Flynn gets the quote of the week by basically saying that the survey hasn't yet changed her mind, but that it has the possibility to. Chico General Plan Downtown Partayyyy The General Plan folks will be discussing and touring downtown Chico as part of a workshop on Tuesday, March 25th from 6PM-8:30PM. The meeting looks like it will occur at the Arroyo Room 131 West First Street (next to Colliers). I would have held the meeting Monday, St Paddy's day, and had it from 6AM-8:30AM, that would have brought in more young people. Watts Up with the IPCC This Washington Times article takes aim at the UN climate change panel for presenting poor science and being influenced by politics. Here's an excerpt... The IPCC published its Fourth Assessment Report in 2007 predicting global warming will lead to widespread catastrophe if not mitigated, yet failed to provide the most basic requirement for effective climate policy: accurate temperature statistics. A number of weaknesses in the measurements include the fact temperatures aren't recorded from large areas of the Earth's surface and many weather stations once in undeveloped areas are now surrounded by buildings, parking lots and other heat-trapping structures resulting in an urban-heat-island effect. Hmmm... I wonder who's work they are referencing in that last bit. Let me think... Watt's his name... I can't remember... I think he's local though. |
 CI Challenge: Can you guess what it is? Winner: The Jolly Green Giant himself, Gregg Payne. See comments below for the answer. |
Posted by Lon at March 14, 2008 06:06 AM
Comments
http://www.worldofstock.com/slides/CON1291.jpg
Ah, here you go...
Posted by: Gregg Payne at March 14, 2008 07:14 AM
I had a political aquaintance comment to me recently that "...this is a much better use of your time than being on the school board".
I think I'll have to agree with that now.
Thanks for the notice Lon.
Posted by: Anthony at March 14, 2008 09:04 AM
Crimony Gregg,
How do you guys find the exact same image I use. Is it because I type the challenge into a google image search and pick one of the top photos? I think you're all on to me, it's time to start using my own photographs.
Prepare for challenges like "Lon's bathroom floor", "Lon's cat's left ear", or "that dead worm-like thing on Lon's driveway".
That is an oak acorn.
Lon
Posted by: Lon at March 14, 2008 01:22 PM
No, first I thought it was some kind of pine cone or something because of the spiral design so I googled tree seeds and there was a bunch of acorns...
Congratulations on the good press, Anthony.
I still think we humans really need to make some big changes fast, but I know dumbed down alarmist propaganda when I see it. Maybe that's what it takes. History does seem to show how the masses need to be scared into improving their bad behavior, even though it doesn't work on a few nonbelievers. It's a good thing, or I would have gone blind and grew hairy palms a long time ago.
Science and art need to always keep an open mind to advance and progress ahead, especially when they "know" they are right. I used to think that was the definition of the word "progressive".
Posted by: Gregg Payne at March 14, 2008 05:02 PM
An acorn? I thought it was a pod, and evil pod, like the kind you see being loaded into the rear of big trucks with canvass covers.
Posted by: Anthony at March 14, 2008 06:16 PM