Save Peninsula Trees Group to Hold Tree Advocacy Class

By Save Peninsula Trees

Save Peninsula Trees is at it again!

Last fall we began assembling information for a citizen’s guidebook on how to protect our community trees. What started a few months ago as some hastily scribbled notes over a pleasant, afternoon coffee at the New Break cafe has now become an honest to goodness handbook. And we’re pretty excited … because …

We are now ready to launch our draft San Diego Tree Advocacy Handbook.

Plus we will be holding a Tree Advocacy class on Saturday, March 25, 2017, 9:30 to 12:00 noon (starting with coffee and bagels) at the Ocean Beach Community Center, 4726 Santa Monica Avenue. Register at https://treeadvocacyclass.eventbrite.com. (No fee is required, but we would appreciate donations to defray the costs for the handbook and bagels.)

We have also been busy attending a number of community and City meetings. We attended the
City Council meeting on January 24th to provide our endorsement of the 5 Year Urban Forestry
Management Plan, which was approved.  The Plan includes the staffing of four, urgently needed, forestry-related positions that we hope will be filled quickly.

Our district representative on the Community Forest Advisory Board (CFAB), Virginia Wilson, has also been attending the monthly CFAB meetings, and has discussed with the City arborist the need to replace the ornamental trees mistakenly planted on Saratoga Avenue with Bishop pine, as requested by the community and as referenced in the OB Community Plan.

The City’s Climate Action Plan goals are part of the foundation of the Urban Forestry Plan, so we hope to keep our trees on the radar in all of these efforts.

Local meetings did not escape our “sweep”, including the Sunset Cliffs Resource Park group, who co-hosted a talk with the California Native Plant Society on the Sunset Cliffs restoration effort, and the OB Historical Society, who presented a talk on the history of Point Loma. Both groups are naturally interested in our community trees, and we are keen to continue participating with all in the OB community to share what we’ve learned about urban tree advocacy and stewardship!

Colleen Deitzel, from the OB Green Center, is involved with a large list of citizen action events, including the Climate Action Plan Mobilization Group, and keeps us up to date on local happenings so we can identify other interested people.

Come to our Tree Advocacy class and learn what your urban canopy is all about! See your  neighborhood with a new perspective! Learn how to size up a tree! No experience or expertise required, just an interest in trees and a desire to protect them!