The Shade Tree Commission and residents urged Athens city officials to preserve the commission’s approval role for development landscaping as the city advances a broad code change package, and the commission approved a volunteer planting for Eastside Park.

The commission and multiple residents said the proposed changes — which planners initially suggested would remove the Shade Tree Commission’s final approval authority and cut planting requirements for new development — risked weakening local tree protections and could imperil the city’s Tree City USA standing. Commissioners and public commenters said the city has since revised the draft but that concerns remain about late consultation and an outstanding exemption for manufacturing developments.

Commission members summarized three near-term planting projects and approved one planting request to place roughly 20–25 trees behind the Walmart at Eastside Park. The approved planting is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 1; the commission said volunteers would be requested. Commissioners also discussed a larger package of code amendments that has moved between the Planning Commission and City Council and is expected to return to those bodies for additional review.

Commission members said the earlier draft of the code package would have reduced a current landscaping requirement (roughly one tree per about 1,700 square feet of new development) to about one tree per 4,500 square feet. Commission members said that change was removed in a subsequent draft and that the city restored the higher planting densities. The commission reported that the city did retain an exemption for manufacturing projects from shade‑tree requirements and added the commission’s name in limited places to the review process; commissioners said those insertions still leave them vulnerable to being consulted too late in development review.

Citizen speakers framed the debate as one of long‑term community and climate benefit. "The long term benefits of a healthy, urban canopy throughout the city should not be underestimated," said Carrie Gibbons, a resident who spoke during public comment. Amy Delich, chair of the Athens Environment and Sustainability Commission, said the local tree canopy was a material factor in the city’s 2019 greenhouse gas inventory results: "We were actually more on par with Europe than most other American cities," she said, describing tree canopy as a key component of emissions mitigation.

Mary Reid of the Athens Arbor Day Committee urged continued oversight: "We have at least two certified arborists on the Shade Tree Commission," Reid said, adding that the city administration lacks comparable arborist expertise and that oversight after development is as important as approval. Other speakers described partnership offers: Molly Jo Stanley, who serves on the Environment and Sustainability Commission, said Power Clean Future Ohio has offered a tree‑canopy assessment and updated greenhouse‑gas inventory services but that the city has not accepted the help because of staff capacity and timing.

Commission members and several residents also warned that the mayor’s reported refusal to reappoint commission members until the code changes are resolved could reduce the commission below quorum, risking the city’s ability to meet Tree City USA expectations. Commissioners said the planning and council calendar is moving quickly: the Planning Commission may consider the draft at its next meeting and the item could move to City Council the following week; council reads ordinances three times, providing additional public comment opportunities as the proposal advances.

Votes at a glance: The commission approved Jen Bowman’s planting request for Eastside Park (about 20–25 trees, species list includes persimmon, elderberry, swamp white, fig, mulberry and other fruit/ shade trees). The motion carried by voice vote; the meeting record does not include a roll‑call tally.

The commission asked staff to post the most recent code‑change draft in the meeting minutes and encouraged residents to attend the upcoming Planning Commission meeting (noon, next Wednesday in the same room) and any subsequent City Council hearings. Speakers promoted a community “tree talk” scheduled for Monday, Oct. 20, at the community center and urged residents to volunteer for upcoming plantings.

For now, the commission’s formal objection remains focused on process and oversight: commissioners want early, substantive review of development landscaping plans, consistent enforcement after planting, and retention of the Shade Tree Commission’s approval authority. The city’s final code language and any formal ordinance(s) moving authority to the Planning Commission were described as pending — the commission said some reductions proposed earlier were removed in the latest draft, but other elements (notably the manufacturing exemption and consultation timing) remain unresolved.