YALE ST.’S MIDDLE-AGED TREES JUST GOT MORE EXPENSIVE TO CHOP DOWN 
Now that the petitioning and voting on the matter has wrapped up, The Houston Heights Association and Trees for Houston had a party this weekend to celebrate Yale St.’s designation as the city’s first official green corridor (between 6th and 19th streets. Organizers gave out baby trees as party favors, Nancy Sarnoff reports, noting that the existing treescape is largely the product of area folks planting seedlings “on both sides of the four-lane road in 1986. Volunteers kept them watered and fought city efforts to expand the roadway, which would have eliminated many of the trees.” Houston’s general colorless tree laws give the city jurisdiction over cutting down certain trees more than 20 inches wide; the green corridor label, defined in 1991 but never actually used before now, trims that protection threshold down to just 15 inches wide along the 1.6-mile stretch of Yale. Other than the reduced belt-size standards, the same rules apply for getting approval to cut down a protected tree anyway — whether by planting  new trees, going after tree preservation credits, or making some pay-by-the-inch contributions (as adjusted for inflation) into the parks and rec department’s tree fund. [Houston Chronicle; city tree ordinances] Photo of Yale St. trees: City of Houston
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Those trees in the pic should’ve never been planted in that tiny space.
So they are celebrating increasing city jurisdiction over cutting down trees in an area where previously the city tried to cut down trees? Am missing how this somehow makes it less likely now?
I am glad to see that the local community fought to ensure the road was not widened and the trees they planted were not removed. This is great to read. Trees do so much for the environment and are to be respected. Removal is the last resport and had better be for legitimate reasons.
I agree with the first comment… Crazy how those trees were even allowed to be planted in such a small space!
It’s sad to see such beautiful trees being removed…but sometimes it must be done.