Thursday, July 11, 2013

Standard-Examiner: Ogden Officials Shocked by Tree Removal by Moron Contractor

Mature sycamores are what we had on Ogden's Laurel Drive up until recently; and that's what we should have in the near future, don'tcha thinks...?

ICO Construction
Particularly aggravating story on the Front page of the Standard-Examiner today, reporting that another greedy brain-dead local developer, namely ICO Construction, made an "off the cuff" "judgment call" to "remove" a stand of 60-year old Sycamores in the vicinity of old St. Benedicts' Hospital site, which according to the most recent Ogden City planning idiocy, is destined to become, if the developer has its way, Ogden's newest "Elderly-housing Facility," LOL. .

Read up, folks:
Just to put in all in perspective, here's a Google Earth photo, showing by overhead view, what the subject site looked like before the greed-head ICO culprits marched into the area with their chainsaws:


And here are some ground-level photos, squeezed out by your blogmeister just today, showing this formerly lush and green, former nuns' quarters', formerly sycamore-lined curbside terrain, in the aftermath:





According to todays S-E story, Ogden City Planner Rick Grover says that the city will soon meet with ICO to discuss ways to remedy the situation. “We are going to be meeting with the contractor to see what can be done to possibly make a small dent into what has happened,” he said. “It would take close to 60 to 70 years before those trees get back to where they were (if the same type of tree were replanted,” Grover says.

That's nice, we guess. But here's what we think Ogden City ought to insist on doing about this.
Hopefully Mayor Mike and his all-star staff will hammer these ICO jacknapes hard.

Mature sycamores are what we had at the intersection of Ogden's Laurel Drive and Polk Avenue until recently.  That's what we should have in the near future; and that's what ICO Construction should pay for, don'tcha thinks...?

11 comments:

blackrulon said...

While "Instant Shade" is available and affordable to require the contractor to install mature shade trees is not probable. It would require city officals to make a contractor repair problems they have caused by their own actions. i cannot remember any recent cases of a contractor being held accountable for their actions. After all if contractors pay fines or make expensive fixes there is less money available to local politicans campaign chests.

Danny said...

First of all, I have learned not to trust what they say in the paper. We still don't know exactly what happened and whose fault it was...

But we do know it was a priority of the Planning Commission and the neighborhood that the trees be kept there. They must be replaced with mature trees. Assigning guilt is just the question of who will pay for it. But they must be replaced with mature trees.

Coo Coo said...

http://www.standard.net/stories/2013/07/05/tree-cutting-causes-controversy You missed the previous article where these same moronic city officials stated they knew about the tree removal and were completely behind the contractor on it. What is also not being reported is the citys own arborist made the call for the removal of the trees.

rudizink said...

LOL. Suffice it to say that the angry neighbors (several of whom I interviewed yesterday) don't give hoot who takes the ultimate blame for this major league blunder. The important thing, from their point of view, is that this problem should and will be>/u> "fixed." And yes; I believe both the City "arborist" and the "General contractor" should have "known better."

For the record, I'll add that your blogmeister has no love lost for our Ogden City "Urban Forrester," who's general trimming style, in my never humble and also well-informed opinion, consistently leans toward "crude", "inartistic" and "heavy handed."

AWM said...

I'm curious how these trees were taken out. That amount of lumber/board feet from 60+ year old Sycamore's should have some aftermarket value. Were the tree's sold or just taken to be "chipped" at the landfill? The answer might indicate an ulterior motive for the contractor or it may in fact underscore their claim.

blackrulon said...

Reminds me of the scence from Casablanca where the police official is shocked, yes shocked to discover gambling in Ricks cafe. Then he is handed his gambling winnings.

Claudia said...

During nesting season too:-(

esmond Perry said...

Thanks for sharing about tree removal
Keep it up

Ogden local said...

you need to get your facts straight the trees were only 27 to 30 years old. When I saw the story I took a photo of the tree stumps. If you want to complain talk to the ADA. If you read the first story it was dictated by the sidewalk that had to be lowered to meet ADA standards.

rudizink said...

You're fulla crap,"Ogden local" (so called) I was born and raised in that neighborhood; and I can attest from my own experience that those sycamores were at least sixty years old, if not more.

Smaatguy said...

"If you read the first story it was dictated by the sidewalk that had to be lowered to meet ADA standards".......uhhhhh...NO.....from a parking lot to the building...yes...but not the public exiting sidewalk...the intersection at the curb...yes...get your ADA facts straight....otherwise we'd have ramps with handrails all the way up the bench from Harrison to Buchannan ....

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