Questionnaire for City candidates in King County (excluding Seattle).
TreePAC is a political action committee to protect and support our Trees and Urban Forest in Cities in King County. Please take a moment to fill out the following questionnaire and return it to us. Thank you for your time and attention.
TreePAC Questions for City Candidates in King County
1. Urban canopy is being lost in many cities in King County as growth in population and development occurs. To help protect and increase urban forest canopy in your city and our region do you support strengthening tree protection by requiring permits to remove large trees on private property like Portland, Oregon; Redmond, WA; Kirkland, WA; Lake Forest Park, WA; and Vancouver, BC do?
Y ______ N______
2. Many cities have both a policy of no net loss of canopy and working to increase their canopy. Do you support your city requiring large trees being removed on public and private property, to be replaced either on site or off site and proportional in size, over time, to the canopy being lost like Portland, OR; Vancouver, BC and Redmond, WA do?
Y________ N_______
3. Seattle’s interim tree ordinance protects existing groves of trees from being removed. Do you support a policy of protecting tree groves in your city to conserve habitat and canopy?
Y ________ N______
4. In many cities trees lack a clear advocate and voice for being protected. Do you support centralizing tree protection in a city department or in a City Arborist’s Office that has oversight and coordination of all urban forest issues in parks, streets, critical areas, private property and utilities?
Y________ N________
5. Larger trees provide significantly more ecological value to our cities and region’s green infrastructure, including reducing storm water runoff, cleaning pollutants from the air and providing animal habitat. Do you support giving greater protection to large trees like Heritage Trees and exceptional trees? (by requiring a larger permit fee and greater numbers of trees being planted if they are removed or by prohibiting removal unless shown to be hazardous)
Y ______ N_________
6. TreePAC believes that deferred maintenance results in the costly replacement of trees and
landscapes. Will you fight to adequately fund public greenspaces, including increased funding
for parks, trees and urban forest preservation and their maintenance so that we can protect
and restore our parklands, greenbelts, and critical areas?
Y ________ N _________
7. Are you willing to meet briefly with representatives from TreePAC, at a time and place that is
mutually convenient?
Y _________ N ________
8. Any clarification or comments you would like to convey to us regarding the above questions, or
on protecting trees and the urban forest in general.
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Thank you for your participation,
Cass Turnbull
TreePAC Founder/President
Name __________________________________ Contact info __________________________
Office and position you are running for _____________________________________________
Please return this completed questionnaire to TreePAC, 906 NW 87th St. Seattle, WA 98117
Questions? Call Cass Turnbull at 206-783-9093 or email cassturnbull (at) comcast.net.
www.TreePAC.org