Tuesday, June 17, 2008

View of Rochier Hill trees burning on March 26, 2006

Please click on image to ENLARGE view of trees burning on the southeast slope of Rochier Hill (Future Summit project) uphill to the west of Aspen Ridge (now Hill Place project) on March 26, 2006.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I had to think about the purpose of showing this timber being burned on the side of a mountain for awhile before I could fit it into your overall purpose, which always seems to be about protecting the watershed.

But it does have a lot to do with what you and Mr. Williams talked about during the meetings. Someone was burning the timber cut along the steep slope above the railroad west of Aspen Ridge in March 2006, right?
That deforested hillside becomes the source of silty runoff down to the railroad and under it to the Aspen Ridge site, which had been cleared in the previous nine months.
I looked at your photos of the Summit project on Rochier Hill and the plans that you posted on Flickr months ago, which haven't turned up at a city meeting again since then.
Had Nock and Broyles already bought that hill and started planning to build on it or was this the previous owner's idea to clear the timber off the slope?
These people seem to believe they can always get away with not following the tree ordinance if they clear the land and let it erode awhile and then claim to be doing the world a kindness by building on it and making a token effort to stop the runoff and erosion.
It may not fool anyone but far too many officials ignore these tricks in their lust for growth and tax revenue at any cost.
Watching the Hill Place developers' meetings with your neighborhood, I remember your saying several times that the Summit plans for Rochier Hill must be considered along with the Hill Place plan to keep a clear view of the impact on the Town Branch and your neighbors down stream.
The city attorney told the council they should consider them separately and they wimped out and didn't demand an explanation from the Hill Place developers.
If someone would do your level of preparation for proposed developments all over town and could get the planning commission and council and mayor and staff actually to study the information and photos, a lot of serious mistakes could be avoided.
I still haven't heard you actually list all your blogs and photo sites in a public meeting. Not publicly citing your documentation is a mistake.
The more people who study the homework you have been doing for the city, the more likely the officials who make the decisions will study it and act on it.
Some people have to be force-fed the truth.