Free trees in Detroit

beenthere · October 14, 2005, 03:38:43 PM

Just read this announcement, and thought it would (might) be of interest, for discussion, if nothing else.

The Assistant Chief of the city of Detroit (State of Michigan) Steven K. Leggat is looking for an individual or company who would be interested in taking (for free) about 80,000 trees (and about another 150,000 trees in the next few years) within the city of Detroit. The city has maps of the location of the trees. Interested parties can contact him and he will connect the parties to the appropriate city office. The contact information is: Steven K. Leggat, Assistant Chief, City of Detroit, Building & Safety Engineering Housing Inspection Division, Coleman A. Young Municipal Center, 2 Woodward Avenue, Suite 412, Detroit, Michigan 48226. Phone: 313-224-3155. Fax: 313-224-2745 leggats@bsed.ci.detroit.mi.us, www.ci.detroit.mi.us.

Frickman · October 14, 2005, 08:27:10 PM

Sounds like someone trying to get some free arborist work, and cleanup as well. I've heard this line a thousand times, but not on this scale. It's a wonder they're not putting out this timber on a bid sale. You pay to cut their trees for them.

SwampDonkey · October 15, 2005, 08:47:50 AM

Are alot of those trees ash, maybe elm? Why would a city be doing this?

sawguy21 · October 15, 2005, 09:15:46 AM

I can just imagine the uproar brewing over something like that. It would be political suicide.

Gary_C · October 15, 2005, 10:18:05 AM

If you could cut and clean up each tree (which is probably surrounded by powerlines, buildings, and streets) in an hour with your crew of four men plus bucket trucks, loaders, chippers, etc. and you could keep your costs to $100 per tree, you would be committing to 40 YEARS of work at a cost of eight million dollars for the first 80,000 trees. Plus if you could salvage 150 bd ft of logs from each tree, you would have to sell those logs for $667 per thousand bd ft to just break even.

What a deal. 8)

timberjack240 · October 15, 2005, 06:57:16 PM

like a lot of people say if its to good to be true it prbably is . i say there more to this story liek the trees are hangin over lines or buildings momuments and stuff liek that. most likley its not exactly a forest just waitin to be wacked over and the tress are probably twisted up half rotten peices of worth less junk. most likely there s catch

Mike_Barcaskey · October 15, 2005, 08:57:21 PM

as one who operates on both sides of that fence (running a tree service and logging and milling) its got to be a DanG nice tree with no clean up take for free or pay for.
Tree service work is tree service work and logging/milling is logging/milling.
many times I get a cherry/walnut/red oak someone wants out of their yard and they think the tree is worth so much $.
It costs X amount to remove it and cleanup operating as a tree service. value as a log (to me) only starts as I unload it in my yard.
out of 80,000 trees I'd lay money you wouldn't find 1,000 with enough value to take out for the lumber

Jeff · October 15, 2005, 09:01:40 PM

I guarantee these are all EAB killed trees within that quarantined area, subject to all the controls and conditions placed on wood within those areas.

beenthere · October 15, 2005, 09:32:55 PM

Is this at all connected with the 'promotional' program for which Jessica was looking for feedback?
I have no connection, and just saw the 'note' that I posted, and thought it would be a good subject to discuss. I agree that the trees can't pay for themselves to be removed from a city. Maybe someone will place a call to Steve Leggat. I'd think if EAB trees, he would already have a number of state Foresters involved, or EAB people involved who would know the value (or lack of) the city trees.
I'm thinking I will approach the Forest Products Society newsletter editor where I read the 'blurb'. Maybe learn something there.

GHRoberts · October 16, 2005, 01:52:31 AM

It is amazing how highly people value their wood lots and how low they value the wood lots of others.

I expect with the right tools the job could be profitable.

SwampDonkey · October 16, 2005, 06:44:04 AM

When I posted above I was thinking the same thing Jeff was. I was suspicious of EAB in the ash and dutch elm disease in elm. Some prairie provinces ban the movement of elm, don't know about the states.

American Elm regulations in Canada

Frank_Pender · October 16, 2005, 06:56:48 AM

MY feeling is, if a politician is saying anything a red flag goes up real fast. If they are telling me it is free, the feeling is even worse, >:(.

Jeff · October 16, 2005, 07:54:35 AM

Quote from: GHRoberts on October 16, 2005, 01:52:31 AM
It is amazing how highly people value their wood lots and how low they value the wood lots of others.

I expect with the right tools the job could be profitable.

GHRoberts, If this is the situation I am thinking of, this is not a "Woodlot" type of scenario. This is a massive tree removal of the dead and dieing Emerald Ash borer trees from the streets and neighborhoods of the Detroit City area. When it is stated an "Individual or Company" In my guestimation they are looking for you to take the good the bad and the uglyand any agreement would require such. They can't afford to pay someone.

That sceneario would be no different, other then the scale, of Harry Home owner with a dead and dangerous tree in his yard calling on all the local tree services and loggers and informing them that he will let them "have the wood" in exchange for coming and removing it and cleaning up the mess.

With the massive loss of the residential and urban Ash trees in this area, I don't see how this could be anything else. I don't reckon they are wanting someone to come and remove their remaining healthy uneffected species, do you?

Kevin · October 16, 2005, 09:46:28 AM

Don't forget all the buildings, other trees and wiring that can't be damaged.

Corley5 · October 16, 2005, 11:55:47 AM

Don't forget the less than pleasant neighborhoods that you'd need to work in

Minnesota_boy · October 16, 2005, 12:05:01 PM

Corley5,
Are you suggesting that it's hard to fell a tree while holding a handgun or rifle?

Corley5 · October 16, 2005, 12:22:51 PM

Yup, Having a chipper stolen would be the least of your worries :

;) A lineman friend of mine did some work in a bad part of Flint a few years back and their biggest fear was being shot at while up in the bucket. The ground crew carried pistols in clear view. The cops thought it was good idea too. There are parts of Detroit that I've driven through and will never go back to. Counted myself lucky to have made it out unscathed. I sure as h*** wouldn't want to work there

Furby · October 16, 2005, 01:12:04 PM

I got off at the wrong exit in Detroit several years back.
After stopping and looking at my map, I figured I could just follow that road to the area I needed to be.
Big mistake!

I'm a lot more careful where I get off the eway now. ;)

SwampDonkey · October 16, 2005, 01:28:52 PM

I'm not even goin down this road. Seen too much on TV about that area. And from what's being said here, it confirms it for me. :

farmerdoug · October 16, 2005, 07:48:01 PM

I am old that the Detriot police do not stop at some stoplights in certain areas of Detriot at night. They just do a rolling stop like most of the residents. ;)

Farmerdoug

beenthere · October 17, 2005, 06:17:21 PM

I did two things to follow-up on this today,

one - I contacted the Steve Leggat, named in the 'blurb' I quoted. He says he knows nothing about it.
Sorry that I didn't check that out first. But I did appreciate the good discussion of the difficulties of removing 'free' wood.

two - I contacted the editor of the newsletter I received, and have to wait until tomorrow to talk about it. It wasn't appropriate for this Society (IMO) to list this 'blurb' and now suspect that they didn't check their source either.

Will see what comes of it tomorrow.

jsimons · October 18, 2005, 03:10:55 PM

Thanks for checking into this, beenthere. Your post in the other thread was the first I'd heard about this. And nope, it had nothing to do with my program. I have to admit, I did find it awfully surprising given the conversations that I've had with foresters in Detroit. I hadn't heard of any such plan (especially one of such grand scale!)... so I'm glad to hear that it seems to be a hoax.

beenthere · October 18, 2005, 04:23:28 PM

Haven't found out yet where it came from, but this fellow Steve Leggat in Detroit says there is no truth to it.
Mystery to me why anyone would go to the trouble to put such a detailed message together (let alone it wasn't really appropriate for the Society that published it), but the editor hasn't responded yet where he found it.
Will keep you posted, at least for interest.