The pink trees planted along a block of Lexington Avenue look very nice every year around this time. Well, they aren't pink all the time, but right now they look like cotton candy. I believe they are the work of that ReTree group. There are large numbers of trees throughout the area, of many varieties, thanks to them. It is especially nice now that they've had a number of years to mature and look like something.

Quoted from Madam X

The pink trees planted along a block of Lexington Avenue look very nice every year around this time. Well, they aren't pink all the time, but right now they look like cotton candy. I believe they are the work of that ReTree group. There are large numbers of trees throughout the area, of many varieties, thanks to them. It is especially nice now that they've had a number of years to mature and look like something.

ReTree Schenectady has done a great job.  There was an attempt to start a ReTreeRotterdam group and the Parks & Recreation Commission tried to help/encourage them.  Unfortunately, programs like retree and improving our parks and recreation have had virtually no support since the Tomassone administration left office.

Too bad you and your pals ran off Steve, the most honest and hardworking super ever in Rdam history.


You don't know what you got til' its gone, eh Biaggio?

Maybe that's the reason ReTree didn't take off in Rotterdam, because there are still lots of trees. It's hard to imagine them gone sometime down the road. I'm not even sure how active they are in Schenectady because BS cut their funding from the city ($12,000, I think) in 2011 and I don't know if they got it back but I think not. I know I've mentioned the pink trees before, but I like to give credit where credit is due and those people have done a lot of hard work to arrest deterioration and improve things. The trees have value beyond esthetics.

Retree Schenectady is a great volunteer group that is still planting despite DEM cuts. Like the Green Market-downtown's biggest success. The problem is pest control and maintenance. For every one planed there are 2 more with carpenter ants ready to cut down. Which in Schenectady is a two month operation.

I'm glad to hear ReTree is still active.

The city is using a new method of tree removal, they cut the tree down to just a trunk and come back much later to finish the job. I'm wondering if that's because they have such a backlog that they need to spend as little time as possible getting the trees to where they aren't going to be dangerous?

That hurricane that wasn't which we had was murder on trees. Quite a few otherwise healthy trees tipped over in the soft mud and had to be cut down.

Quoted from Madam X

Maybe that's the reason ReTree didn't take off in Rotterdam, because there are still lots of trees. It's hard to imagine them gone sometime down the road. I'm not even sure how active they are in Schenectady because BS cut their funding from the city ($12,000, I think) in 2011 and I don't know if they got it back but I think not. I know I've mentioned the pink trees before, but I like to give credit where credit is due and those people have done a lot of hard work to arrest deterioration and improve things. The trees have value beyond esthetics.

I know that one of ReTree's requests or ideas was that commercial avenues like Altamont Avenue or hamburg Street.. should be planted with trees.   The corner of Altamont and Curry where Capitol Plaza should have some trees and not just stones.  Same with the Hannaford-WalMart Plaza.  There really is nothing in our code to require new construction/redevelopment to plant trees .. so someday we will end up with tree-less traffic corridors UNLESS we demand differently.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

I know that one of ReTree's requests or ideas was that commercial avenues like Altamont Avenue or hamburg Street.. should be planted with trees.   The corner of Altamont and Curry where Capitol Plaza should have some trees and not just stones.  Same with the Hannaford-WalMart Plaza.  There really is nothing in our code to require new construction/redevelopment to plant trees .. so someday we will end up with tree-less traffic corridors UNLESS we demand differently.

Hey, DV, got any EVIDENCE yet to support your claim that the county taxes are lower than 50 years ago???????

Also, why don't you post/respond on these boards about topics about the falling home values, the lack of people willing to buy a home in the city, the increasing taxes.   Your ONLY comments on those IMPORTANT issues affecting TAXPAYERS is to spew nonsense babble.

Schenectady county is behind other areas as far as what they require in the way of trees and other landscaping for businesses. They seem to believe requiring anything will keep businesses from wanting to open, but places that do impose some requirements as far as looks, curb cuts, etc. do better. Look at how Colonie planted all those trees years back, I think that for a commercial area Central Avenue doesn't look too bad, and they have all the business they can handle. A little bit of planning goes a long way.
We prefer the "instant ghetto" barren asphalt jungle model here, for the most part.

Quoted from DemocraticVoiceOfReason

I know that one of ReTree's requests or ideas was that commercial avenues like Altamont Avenue or hamburg Street.. should be planted with trees.   The corner of Altamont and Curry where Capitol Plaza should have some trees and not just stones.  Same with the Hannaford-WalMart Plaza.  There really is nothing in our code to require new construction/redevelopment to plant trees .. so someday we will end up with tree-less traffic corridors UNLESS we demand differently.

Hey DV, those taxpayer-paid trees downtown, how much have they increased the tax base in the city?

They can only increase the value of tax-paying areas.
Downtown, every time they come up with some new cockamamie scheme to 'fix' it, they have to cut down all the trees to put in whatever magic new streetscape that is going to work wonders. So the trees you see there are basically replacement ones, there is no net gain. Besides, I don't know if anyone else goes downtown long enough to notice, but even if you were inclined to sit along the street in the baking sun, you would not find a spot to rest for a moment, just as you won't find a "restroom". How to make downtown attractive without attracting people, there's the problem.

Quoted from Madam X

Schenectady county is behind other areas as far as what they require in the way of trees and other landscaping for businesses. They seem to believe requiring anything will keep businesses from wanting to open, but places that do impose some requirements as far as looks, curb cuts, etc. do better. Look at how Colonie planted all those trees years back, I think that for a commercial area Central Avenue doesn't look too bad, and they have all the business they can handle. A little bit of planning goes a long way.
We prefer the "instant ghetto" barren asphalt jungle model here, for the most part.

The difference is that Colonie and many other municipalities have provisions WITHIN their zoning laws and town codes to require green space.   The municipal planner and the municipal planning body can only require what is IN the zoning laws and town codes -- and those matters are in other hands.