OK, I haven’t had much time to go through this in much depth yet, but I wanted to get it up on the site so folks can begin to review.  (You can also view the work session LIVE right now (6:36p) at this link)

Decatur’s Public Information Officer Casie Yoder has sent along the proposed tree ordinance summary, along with the presentation being given to the Decatur City Commission this evening and residential and commercial flow charts. Here are links to them all.

• Proposed Tree Ordinance Summary
• Tree Ordinance Presentation
• Residential Tree Ordinance Flow Chart
• Commercial Tree Ordinance Flow Chart

And for your convenience, here’s the “Summary of Draft Recommendations” from the first document above:

• Sets a community-wide tree canopy cover goal of 55% to be achieved by 2039.

• Relies on the city arborist to administer the tree ordinance and promote tree conservation and planting beyond the tree ordinance through information, education, and public tree maintenance programs (planting, pruning, other maintenance, and tree risk management).

• Identifies a single class protected trees. Protected trees includes all public trees and all trees conserved or planted to meet requirements (regardless of size), and all trees 6 inches diameter at breast height (dnh) and greater. This protected tree class includes trees that were designated as significant, specimen and landmark in the current ordinance. simplifies the regulations and focuses simply on tree canopy cover.

• Regulations set on any project that will disturb 20% or more of the tree protection zone of any protected tree.

• Provides a clear definition of boundary trees and requires protection if the tree is being impacted by a project.

• A separate set of administrative guidelines will be created to facilitate implementation.

• A tree species list is included as an appendix.

• The fee schedule, inspection fees and value of tree canopy used to calculate contributions to the tree bank have been removed from the ordinance. These fees and values will instead be included in the city’s planning and zoning fee schedule which is reviewed and updated annually

UPDATE: The city has announced that it’s offering “Polar Camp” for K-5 kids on a first come, first serve basis.  Here are the details…

It’s still really cold out, and City Schools of Decatur will be closed tomorrow. For City of Decatur residents looking for something for the little polar bears (aka children) to do, there will be a special Polar Camp tomorrow, Tuesday, Jan. 7 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Decatur Recreation Center, 231 Sycamore St.

Polar Camp is first-come, first served for a limited number of City of Decatur students in Kindergarten through fifth grade only. There is no cost for Polar Camp for Decatur residents. Parents will need to fill out registration and health forms when dropping off campers who are not already enrolled in after school programs.

For more information, please call Children and Youth Services at .

http://thedecaturminute.com/2014/01/06/breaking-polar-camp-tomorrow-at-rec-center/

From the CSD website…

Based on predicted frigid temperatures, and for the safety of our students and employees, City Schools of Decatur will be closed Tuesday, January 7. All scheduled events, including extra-curricular activities and events will be rescheduled.  Our 12-month employees should report at 10:00 a.m.

Our staff has monitoring national and state weather services regarding the predicted freezing temperatures for Tuesday. District leadership has also been in communication with other metro school systems regarding their plans. The forecast for tomorrow morning is 7 degrees with a predicted wind chill factor of -13 degrees. According to the National Weather Service, the gusty winds and bitterly cold temperatures will combine to produce dangerously cold wind chills overnight creating a potentially dangerous situation for students and staff.  After careful consideration, CSD will close on Tuesday, January 7, to ensure the safety of our students who walk to school, the students transported by bus, and our employees.

City Schools Decatur was closed on Monday, January 6 due to the predicted icy conditions in the Metro-Atlanta area.  We are simply not equipped to accommodate black ice on roads and extremely frigid temperatures as schools in the northern United States may be.  We closed to ensure the safety of our students as well as our staff, many of whom travel a significant distance to work in our schools.  We cannot predict the effect of the extreme cold on the heating of our schools. Additionally, we have many students who do not own appropriate clothing for below-zero conditions. Having them walk to school, wait at the bus stop or be in schools that might not have heat is a chance that we are not willing to take.

 

We apologize for any inconvenience this may create for our families, but we must consider all factors and make the best decision possible with the information presented.  The safety of students and staff is always our top priority.  Thank you for your continued support of City Schools of Decatur. If you venture outside on Tuesday, please wear appropriate attire which includes a heavy coat, layers, a hat and gloves and be aware of the signs of frostbite and hypothermia.

Sgt Jennifer Ross sends along this request to the community…

This is not a warning to the community that it is cold outside, we are all quite aware.  This is a request for everyone to pitch in as a community and offer something that is free, a few minutes of your time.  Many of us prep for cold weather by stocking the kitchen, picking up a space heater, throwing more blankets on the bed and tending to our plants and animals.   However, it is not easy for every member of our community to prepare for or endure extremely cold weather.  Please take a few minutes to check on the seniors in your neighborhood.  See if you can bring in their mail or wood or something else they may need.  Sometimes simply being checked on is greatly appreciated when staying indoors gets to be lonely.  Lastly, a neighbor may need emergency assistance and unable to call for themselves. If you are caring for an elder loved one or simply watching out for seniors in your neighborhood, here is a link to some specific tips to help.http://www.agingcare.com/Articles/cold-weather-protection-for-seniors-148625.htm

The City of Decatur has posted a note on its website alerting residents that the first commission meeting of the year will happen as planned this evening at 7:30p.

The actual meeting will be a light load with the annual election of the mayor, mayor pro-tem and the appointment of the city attorney and municipal court judges.

What will be of the most interest to all will be the 6:00p work session regarding a draft of an updated tree ordinance. The current tree moratorium is in effect until January 24th anticipating this update. There’s no document on the city website yet, but we’ve reached out to the city and we’ll pass that along to you as soon as we have it in hand.

Remember last year when we discussed the idea of Sprouts Farmer’s Market coming to Decatur?

Well, this morning Tomorrow’s News Today reports this morning that Sprouts has confirmed five Atlanta metro locations.  They include Snellville, Norcoss, Dunwoody, Cumming and John’s Creek.  As for Decatur, TNT writes this…

Sprouts is also rumored to be involved in a Fuqua Development planned project in Kennesaw, as well as a Cousins project in Decatur.

The “Cousin’s project” is obviously the pending redevelopment of the Callaway building along Trinity Ave between Commerce and S. McDonough, which the city has facilitated over the past year.