Save the Elms of East 6th

On Saturday, January 21, residents along East 6th Avenue gathered with Vancouver Park Board officials near Victoria Drive to add the last few shovels of dirt to plant a new Elm tree.

As the Vancouver Sun reported, at about 10 feet, the new Elm was dwarfed by the dozens of majestic, 70-year old Elms that line the street, yet those gathered let out a boisterous cheer for what the young tree represented: a historic collaboration between the Vancouver Park Board and area residents which will result in over 50 new Elm trees being planted along East 6th Avenue.

Close to a year ago, in February 2011, the Park Board had announced plans to remove 30 of the mature Elms and drastically prune others. The community’s passionate outcry led to the formation of the East 6th Elms Joint Working Group of six area residents and Park Board officials. The collaboration resulted in a plan to remove only five of the existing Elms, scale back the pruning plans to balance public safety with preservation, and to reinvigorate the majestic Elm canopy by planting over 50 new Elms.

The first new Elm was celebrated at an event on Saturday, January 21, attended by local residents, Vancouver Park Board Chair Constance Barnes, Commissioners Aaron Jasper, Niki Sharma, Sarah Blyth and Melissa De Genova, and Park Board General Manager Malcolm Bromley. Barnes thanked the community for its passion and commitment to preserving their street trees, and Bromley spoke about the successful collaboration between the Park Board and area residents informing the way Park Board will work with other neighbourhoods in the future.

“It is an enormous success story, not only for our neighbourhood but for all of Vancouver,” resident member of the Joint Working Group, Inge Mueller-Langer, told the Vancouver Sun. “It just goes to show that residents, working together, can really help shape their neighbourhoods. It was the best possible outcome for all involved.”

Close to 40 young Siberian elm trees have arrived in Vancouver in anticipation of planting on East 6th Avenue. The Siberian elms were transported in November from an Alberta nursery, and East 6th Ave residents from the Elms Joint Working Group joined city arborist Bill Stephen to view the elms in the Vancouver Park Board nursery by Sunset Community Centre.

The new elms are expected to be planted in January 2012, filling gaps along East 6th Ave where elms once grew. The planting is part of a plan aimed at renewing the dramatic elm canopy along East 6th, realizing the vision that:

The stately East 6th Avenue elm canopy continue to thrive, inspire and delight residents and the broader community with its beauty, shade and exceptional environmental and historic value. 

A draft planting plan and draft management plan for the East 6th treescape were featured at an Open House held on October 26. The Open House also included a questionnaire inviting feedback. The results from the questionnaire featured a high degree of support for the draft plans: over 80% of respondents supported the draft planting plan and over 75% supported the overall direction of the draft management plan for the East 6th treescape.   

The planting expected in January 2012 will follow pruning of 25 elms in December to address structural and safety issues.

The new Siberian elms are an excellent size, standing 12 to 15 feet tall, with a six to eight inch girth and a three foot root ball. The planting will include a few American elms as well, with close to 50 new elm trees being planted in total. (There are currently some American elms mixed in with the Siberian elms along the nine block stretch of East 6th Ave, and so the new planting will continue that mixture.)

Once the planting schedule is confirmed, the Elms Joint Working Group of residents and Park Board staff will host a celebration of the new elm trees. Save this tentative date: Saturday January 21st. Plan to come and celebrate with East 6th!

Many thanks to all those who attended the Elms Open House on October 26! It was fabulous to see so many members of the community come out, engaging with the plans for preserving and renewing the unique elm canopy we enjoy on East 6th Avenue.  

For those who weren’t able to make it, the full Elms Open House information package and survey is available on the Vancouver Park Board website, and includes:

• A Pruning Plan: to address certain structural and safety issues with 25 of the trees along East 6th
• A draft Planting Plan: to fill in the gaps along the street where elms once grew
• A draft Management Plan: to ensure the health and longevity of this heritage streetscape
• An online survey: to share your thoughts on the proposed plans

The East 6th Elms Joint Working Group made up of area residents and Park Board staff eagerly look forward to hearing your thoughts and ideas on the proposed plans for preserving and renewing the East 6th elm canopy.

An information package has been distributed along East 6th Avenue that includes a questionnaire and a handout called “A Plague of Beetles”. Please note that this information package was not distributed by the Joint Working Group of six area residents and Vancouver Park Board staff who have been addressing the future of our street trees on East 6th Ave. Rather, it was distributed by an individual resident who is seeking to have two 3-foot palm trees he planted on the street boulevard retained where they are.

The working group appreciates the resident’s interest in the palms, and we have been discussing options with him – for example, the Park Board has offered to transplant the two palms to his property at no cost. This offer is a generous one given that the city’s street tree bylaw actually prohibits residents from planting trees on the street boulevard without written permission.

The resident has every right to express his views, but we are concerned that his information package contains misleading information about elm trees and the working group’s proposals, as we explain below.

Please note as well that the questionnaire included with the “Plague of Beetles” information package is not the questionnaire that will be at the upcoming Elms Open House on Wednesday October 26.

1. Planting plan and non-elm trees

Resident’s information package: “Not a single gap will be allowed. No other species will be tolerated but Siberian elms. Existing trees will be taken out.”

The reality: The draft plan does not propose the removal of any mature non-elm trees. Existing mature non-elm public trees are to be retained. There are a few small trees that residents have planted and all but one person has agreed to relocate them. We know that there are varying opinions in the community about the non-elm trees that have been planted over the years where elms once grew. At the Public Open House on October 26 there will be a questionnaire and one of the questions is about people’s views on removing non-elms gradually over time to maintain a consistent elm canopy.

2. Siberian elms

Resident’s information package: Siberian elms are highly susceptible to Dutch Elm Disease.

The reality: Siberian elms are noted for their resistance to Dutch Elm Disease. Authoritative articles such as “The American Elm and Dutch Elm Disease” and “Dutch Elm Disease and Its Control” speak of how Siberian elms are among the most resistant species of elm to the disease.

3. Dutch Elm Disease

Resident’s information package: Dutch Elm Disease can arrive at any time.

The reality: The disease reached eastern Canada in 1945, and in 65 years has not reached British Columbia. There are strict quarantines around elm trees and the situation is highly monitored (for example, elm trees east of Alberta cannot be imported into British Columbia).

4. Risks

Resident’s information package: The proposal does not spell out risks.

The reality: Our draft plan has a significant section on challenges and issues.

The Elms Open House

Please remember about the Elms Open House on Wednesday, October 26 at the Grandview Legion from 4pm-8pm.

The Open House is a drop-in format where the working group’s draft plans for the East 6th Elms will be featured on information boards and in a draft management plan for the treescape. Park Board staff and the area residents who have been participating on the Joint Working Group will be there, inviting feedback on the draft plans, and a questionnaire will be available to complete at the Open House or afterwards via the web. We are happy to hear your comments and to answer any questions you may have.

Looking forward to seeing you there!

From the residents on the East 6th Elms Joint Working Group

Siberian Elm trees will be planted in gaps along East 6th Ave this fall, as part of a succession plan for the East 6th Elms developed by a working group of Vancouver Park Board staff and six area residents. The Elms Joint Working Group was formed in May after the Vancouver Park Board announced its intention to work with the community to develop medium and long term plans for the Elms.

The Elms Joint Working Group has spent the summer developing plans for pruning, replanting, species selection and succession planning for East 6th. An Open House will be held on Wednesday, October 26 to update the community on the plans and get feedback on a draft succession plan.

What: East 6th Elms Open House
When: Wednesday, October 26, from 4pm to 8pm
Where: Grandview Legion at East 6th Ave and Commercial Drive

Among the highlights of the draft succession plan is a commitment to plant Elm trees in over 50 gaps along the nine blocks of East 6th Ave between Woodland and Nanaimo. Up to 46 of those sites will be planted this fall with Siberian Elms secured from an Alberta nursery.

As Siberian Elms are difficult to source, the draft succession plan identifies strategies to develop a supply of Elms for future planting, including working with the community to harvest and care for Elm seedlings. The draft succession plan also highlights the importance of watering young trees, and invites the community to play an integral role in stewarding these new Elms for their first three years.

The Open House will also feature details of a fall pruning plan for the 25 Elm trees that were saved last spring. The pruning plan, which has been endorsed by the Elms Joint Working Group, addresses safety concerns with the trees while still preserving as much of the trees as possible. The pruning will take place in early November.

We invite you to join us at the Open House on October 26 to:

• Learn details of the fall pruning plan.
• Provide feedback on the draft planting plan.
• Offer your thoughts on the draft succession plan.

Some of the wood from the five Elm trees recently removed from East 6th Avenue will remain in the community, featured in a natural playground at a local school.

Grandview/¿uuqinak’uuh Elementary School, located at Woodland and East 6th Ave, will be incorporating wood from the fallen trees into a natural playground they are building this summer. The designs for the natural playground will be unveiled at an event at the school on June 15, Canada’s first annual Nature Play Day. From the information package about the launch event:

“Sadly, several of the beautiful and sweeping Elms that lined 6th Avenue just down from the school have recently had to be removed due to safety issues. Continuing a tradition started with another ING Direct natural playground project in Toronto, the design incorporates these fallen trees into the natural playground. They will be given new life as climbers, benches and fallen logs through contributions and support from the Vancouver Park Board.”

The natural playground is being built in partnership with the Vancouver School Board and the City of Vancouver, and is funded by a community investment from ING Direct along with matching local fundraising.

A new set of signs went up on the East 6th Elms this weekend. As a joint resident and Parks Board working group gets started on developing a plan for the East 6th Elms together, signs went up on the 6 trees that will be removed later this month as well as the 25 trees that have been saved.

The joint resident and Parks Board working group starts this week on a process to develop a plan for the Elms, including pruning, replanting, and succession planning. We’ll be providing updates on the process as it unfolds.

Meanwhile, in Saturday’s Vancouver Sun, Pete McMartin highlighted the East 6th Elms in a column about how Malcolm Bromley brings a more collaborative approach to his role as the Vancouver Park Board’s general manager. “We don’t own these trees and parks, you do,” said Bromley. “That old-school style of coming in and saying, ‘We’re coming in and cuttin’ down trees,’ just does not work.”