By Lee Weyhrich
PINSON — In May, Councilman Robbie Roberts expressed concerns over the number of trees slated to be removed on the walking trail. According to Roberts, the wooded area is beautiful as-is, provides a home for wildlife and is roughly 10 degrees cooler than the rest of the park, yet more than half the trees there had been marked for removal, he said.
The large percentage of trees had been marked for removal in order to clear the underbrush and allow room for mowers to go between the larger trees, but Roberts and councilman John Churchwell agreed that perhaps too many trees had been slated for the axe.
At the last council meeting the council voted unanimously to hold off on removing any tree that did not pose a hazard until further analysis could be done.
At this meeting, Councilwoman Dawn Tanner made a motion to remove any tree two inches in diameter or smaller, privets and any tree which poses a safety hazard.
“I thought we settled this at the last meeting — If I’d known I would have brought some other folks along to discuss the beauty and the importance of a natural area,” Roberts said. “Privet I’m fully in favor of removing, the other trees will take years to grow back. Without proper analysis of this I feel like we might be making a mistake.”
Roberts was the only dissenting vote against Tanner’s proposal, stating he disagreed vehemently with removing the trees. He later expressed his anger over the hasty decision.
Less controversial were Cochran’s proposals regarding the splash pad.
Cochran made a motion to add additional signage regarding rules around the splash pad. The rules are already posted on the board but are being ignored. He believes additional signs will make it harder for people to claim they had not seen the rules.
Based on recommendations from employees, Cochran also recommended the council purchase six 8.5-inch by 11-inch plastic containers for sorting wristbands, a fly swatter and a bulletin board. The council voted unanimously to purchase those items.
also suggested the council look into software to keep track of what is sold at the park. Currently everything is hand-written and collated later. Cochran believes a Point-of-Sale system would make the system more organized and easier to keep track of. Roberts suggested the council use numbered wristbands to keep people from trying to take advantage by reusing old wristbands.
Two other items were briefly mentioned regarding the park. One involved signs advertising events and programs and whether – and where – these might be allowed to be placed on the grounds. Roberts also mentioned head librarian April Self’s suggestion that a “little free library” box be placed at the park.
Little Free Libraries are generally weather-resistant boxes made to house several books that can be “checked out” for free and without a library card. Often times people will trade books they have already read for something they have not.
Both items will likely be discussed at the next council meeting.