The Meridian City Council on Tuesday discussed ongoing efforts to address problem trees throughout the city and learned more about cleanup efforts underway from weekend storms.

City Arborist Kevin Locke said the city currently has a crew that is tasked with assessing and maintaining city-owned trees. The crews, with help from Public Works, help prune back limbs that hang too far over into roads and clear low-lying branches, he said.

While much of the pruning is done in house, Locke said removing large trees that are dead or otherwise present a hazard must be contracted out to a professional tree removal contractor.

The council has been studying the city’s capabilities maintaining and removing trees in January after learning 33 trees had been slated for removal, but the current funding would cover just eight or nine. The council ultimately decided to increase the tree removal budget, which falls under Community Development, to cover the $80,850 cost to remove all 33 trees.

Councilman Dwayne Davis proposed setting aside $50,000 each year for maintenance and removal of city trees. Setting aside enough funds each year for regular upkeep and a handful of tree removals would help Locke and his crew keep up with the work and avoid having another large removal project.

Locke said $50,000 would be enough to cover tree maintenance and removal with money left over to plant new trees where old ones are removed.

Community Development Director Craig Hitt said the additional funds could also go toward freeing up some state and federal money as well.

The city received funds from the state and federal governments several years ago for a tree planting project, he said, but the city never allocated its share of the project, Hitt said. Using some of the money for the city’s portion could complete that project, he said, and free up the city to apply for a new round of funding.

Davis said his proposal would be to transfer $50,000 from the city’s special projects funds to Community Development for Locke to use this fiscal year, which ends September 30. Moving forward, he said, the council could include the tree upkeep funds for future years in the city’s annual budgets.

No action was taken in the work session, but the council is expected to revisit the issue in its April 4 meeting.

Storm Cleanup

Public Safety Director Doug Stephens said his department was working to tally the damages caused by weekend storms. Multiple trees fell across roads, struck homes and damaged power lines.

Stephens said he was working to track the cost of debris disposal and assessing damage to homes and businesses. Those figures will be shared with the county to be submitted to the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency for a disaster declaration. Counties and states must meet certain thresholds of damage estimates to be eligible to receive emergency funding.

Residents who hire a contractor to remove downed trees or debris should be aware the contractor is responsible for having the tree hauled off, Stephens said. However, if the homeowner is able to cut limbs into 6-foot lengths no larger than 8-inches in diameter and stack them on the curb, the city will haul them off, he said.

Public Works Director David Hodge said his staff had been in contact with Waste Pro, which provides garbage pickup service to the city, to draw up a plan to handle the limbs and debris that will need to be hauled off.