After numerous design modifications and cost saving negotiations with the builders to install two full size, artificial turf baseball fields on the newly acquired park land obtained during a land swap with the DeKalb County School System for Austin Elementary, it has been determined that many, if not all of the trees surrounding the fields at North Peachtree Rd.& Barclay Dr. will need to be removed. I am not happy with the design decision as with every major discussion of this project I have raised the issue of protecting the neighbors who live on either North Peachtree Road or Riverglenn Circle from the illumination of the playing field.
In the latest change, the fields were moved further away from North Peachtree Road in order to not have a huge retaining wall and my hopes for the change included more trees being saved but I was informed this week that unfortunately, it was not the case. Currently, 296 trees are slated for removal.
Mr. Brent Walker, Parks Director stated that... "Due to the size of the fields and the area we have to work in, we will have to grade the slope along North Peachtree Rd and Barclay Dr. This will require the removal of the trees. We will work with the contractor to minimize the impact as much as possible and through the City's "No Net Loss of Trees Policy" we will replant a one for one ratio for the trees removed. Several on the site. We expect clearing and grading to begin the end of next week or the first part of the week after. I am happy to work with you and your neighbors when we begin to re-landscape the area and try to accommodate any requests you have for tree and shrubbery replacement."
As Mr. Walker stated the City does have a "No Net Loss of Trees Policy" for City projects therefore many of the trees & shrubs will be replanted on site but it will take a few years for the landscaping to get to a size to protect the neighbors across the street. The landscaping plan is not set in stone therefore once the fields are installed and the lights illuminated, it can be a community discussion as to the scope of landscaping plan. The plan also includes new sidewalks on Barclay as well as refreshed landscaping in that area of the park.
The city is investing in the latest lighting technology whereby with the use of LED lights there will be little light spill over off the fields therfore the hope is that the lights will be unobtrusive to the neighbors.
The new field designs were vetted with Principal Heptinstall and the athletic coaches of PCMS, the PCMS Parent Council, Dunwoody Senior Baseball as well as oversight of the City Council attempting to squeeze as many positive features into this $5.6 million dollar project. The fields will be laid out for baseball but they will be stripped for multi use including soccer & lacrosse in the outfield as well as have a seperate layover striping for girls softball. The total cost includes all construction, turf, concession stand, plaza, lighting, batting cages, dugouts, etc and I imagine that this will be a transformational project for our community which will impact Dunwoody middle school students at PCMS & thousands of athletes over the next twenty years.
My guess is that construction will be messy and much like the heartache of cutting the Brook Run Trail through the woods, with a few years of growth it will be a beautiful facility that the entire community can be proud of.
Dear Mr Heneghan,
ReplyDeleteObviously the City continues to do planning and business as usual. You were totally naive in believing you could build fields this big in this small a space for $5,6M using the artists renditions and engineering that have previously been presented. This level of work should have been done over a year ago to give you better cost estimates before you struck the very expensive deal with Dekalb for the land swap. Even the picture you sent in this posting is far from the reality every citizen within 1000 feet should be made aware of. That picture is not realistic for anytime in the next 20 years or for $5.6M. I am not convinced that your hired contractors have exhausted every design possibility. Have you considered moving the football field closer to the fire station, shifting everything West? There are no adjacent houses over there. This is not going to be ready in time for next season. Get over that, and DO the right thing for the residents. Stop and THINK, before you start construction, please. Don't consider this blog as thoroughly vetting this issue with your constituents. It only gets worse for us residents when the tree cutting begins. Soliciting patience and waiting until the end is just not the time to design the landing gear. We need YOU to STOP this construction schedule until better designs are vetted, not complain in a blog that you tried to save trees and residents' sense of home but were unable at the last minute. You are our voice, but more so, the guy who needs to LEAD the action on our behalf. Public Works works for you, not the other way around. Like Cool Hand Luke said, "What we have here is Failure to Communicate." Please, please let's do NOT repeat the intersection improvement fiasco we district 3 residents continue to endure.
IMO, these plans have been in discussion for a year or so, and it's not feasible to spend years exploring every possible permutation of what is possible.
ReplyDeleteThe football field has a drainage area just west of it, so it's unlikely that it's remotely feasible to shift it further west.
I think the end result will be good (eg. like the Brook Run trail). If I lived directly across N. Peachtree, I would be curious about exactly how late games can go on at night, but even then only if the lighting was very noticeable at my house.
Right now, on weekends the gate on Barclay is (annoyingly) locked, but the track area is otherwise accessible to the public. John, do you know if this will stay the same? Will the ball fields be accessible? (I'd assume maybe not).
Also, that parking lot by the school, much higher than the fields, hidden from view by those down on the fields, could be very susceptible to break-ins. Just something to ponder and try to minimize up front.
No responsible person in a position to prevent the clear cutting of 296 trees in Brook Run Park would allow it. Who on earth in Dunwoody government is responsible for this? They should be banished from any position where they represent the people of this city.
ReplyDeleteI am a new homeowner in Dunwoody. From the first time I entered this city, coming off of the perimeter highway, I was soothed by the canopy of old growth trees that lines North Peachtree Road. Last weekend I learned that some of the most soothing and beautiful of these trees which are located on North Peachtree just before Barclay Drive, are to be removed - for ball fields with artificial turf that will be used for a league of teenage boys! Are you out of your minds? This is a park! In an urban area! This area is blessed with many trees that cannot be replaced in our lifetimes despite your slick talk about "zero net loss of trees."
I walked the area last weekend and saw that what is slated to be removed is an entire ecosystem, a mini forest of trees that currently shades North Peachtree Road near Barclay Drive. The trees continue along Barclay Drive. I am told the the beautiful open field that these trees surround is currently used on an informal basis by local residents for soccer games.That is what a park is for! And you're spending how many millions - or is it billions?- to wipe out the trees - and the grass - to create a special use field for a limited population?
Whoever is responsible for this plan of action - sneaked past residents with no warning or solicitation of comment, has no idea what it means to have respect for the earth, or the people of this city who need the solace of trees to live happily ever after in Dunwoody.
Obviously, my definition of a park is different than yours. The # 1 answer to your survey for the park was " hiking trails". That means GREENSPACE. NOT recreation area.
ReplyDeleteThis is what Dunwoody has been known for. Just drive down Barclay Drive. It is one of the few tree lined streets left and it's owned by the PARK. How can you, in good conscience, remove 296 trees that will take another 40 years to provide the buffer, shade and beauty that they already provide ? You should look at Frederick Law Olmsted's parks - a number of which are in Decatur. A park is a place of beauty, reflection and peacefulness. You are destroying that for no good reason.
Your plan for the baseball fields is misleading and basically a lie. It shows a lovely border of trees along North Peachtree and Barclay Drive. I imagine that when the people who live in Dunwoody North see the destruction of this lovely canopied area, and then have to suffer with the noise and the lights of the ball fields, they will ask why you removed all the trees. I wonder what you will tell them.
"Tree lose unavaoidable over Council concerns" . Sad- you had the right to vote this down and yet, for no accountable reason, you disagreed but PASSED this anyway.
What kind of a council is that ? You are not representing yourselves or your constituents or the lovely 40 year old trees.
How can this happen??? At the last minute this destruction of trees is blithely revealed without ANY community input. Was this the plan all along? Bait and switch and ignore/avoid/dodge potential neighborhood objections. What kind of representation is this?
ReplyDeleteApparently the lame "No Net Tree Loss" policy is a sham. Just do whatever you want as long as you plant a few saplings you can cover youself. 296 mature trees is a major impact and evidently you are content to roll over and accept this outrage.
My fervent hope is that a class action suit can be organized against the the City for this flagrant disregard for community concerns and it's own No Tree Loss policy. Sneaking this decision in over a weekend and in effect telling the neighborhood to suck it up is a stab in the back to your constituents.
Can you post the rationale for not considering underground detention at the west end of this site that would allow a portion of the track and football field to sit on top of it? Given the massive earth movement for elevation changes and piping to accommodate the astroturf drainage, I think there is merit to factor such detention (and sustainability) features into the design. You might be able to provide some water for park landscaping with a bigger picture water management goal in mind. Can you also post the latest construction drawings and landscaping plans that have created thus far? What will this project look like right after the trees are re-planted?
ReplyDeleteThanks