Riviera Golf Club

February 10, 2016

Regarding the Trees at Riviera

I am extremely concerned about the proposal made by Riviera Venture LLC to remove so many mature trees from Riviera. In response, the Friends of Dublin listed a counter proposal on their website. These 58 trees are mature, stately specimens and deserve preservation.

As a layperson and avid gardener, I wondered about the ages of the trees in question.

So, I looked up a variety of tables online and found there is a pretty standard formula for figuring it out. Assuming that the trees were measured correctly (caliper at 4.5 feet from the ground), I was astounded at the results!

The information listed below was taken primarily from the International Society of Arboriculture website. A growth factor (for example x3) is used to calculate the age of a tree based on species and diameter. There were two maples (Sweet and Freeman’s) I could not find, so I estimated conservatively, based on how maples grow.

Pin Oak x3
Little leaf Linden x3
Sweet gum x4
Red Maple x4.5
Sugar maple x5.5
Silver maple x3
River birch x3.5
London Plane x3
Scots Pine x4
Blue spruce x6
Honey Locust x4
Red Oak x4
White pine x5
Linden x3
River Birch x3.5
Ornamental Pear x3

The table below from the Friends of Dublin website shows the trees that the group requests saving.

Tree	Caliper Inches	Condition	Species	Factor	Age
37	12	Good	Red Maple	4.5	54
444	12	Good	Red Maple	4.5	54
147	13	Good	Red Maple	4.5	58.5
334	14	Good	Blue Spruce	6	84
404	15	Good	Sweet Gum	4	60
535	15	Good	Thornless Honey Locust	4	60
622	15	Good	Sugar Maple	5.5	82.5
903	15	Good	Sweet Gum	4	60
642	16	Good	Sweet Gum	4	60
794	16	Good	London Planetree	3	48
902	16	Good	Ornamental Pear	3	48
243	17	Good	Sweet Gum	4	68
450	17	Good	Black Locust	4	68
904	17	Good	Sweet Gum	4	68
66	18	Good	Scots Pine	4	72
76	18	Good	Thornless Honey Locust	4	72
656	18	Good	Sweet Gum	4	72
858	18	Good	Sweet Gum	4	72
134	19	Good	London Plane	3	57
256	19	Good	Sweet Gum	4	76
224	20	Good	Sugar Maple	5.5	110
251	20	Good	Sweet Gum	4	80
301	20	Good	Sweet Gum	4	80
380	20	Good	Sweet Gum	4	80
449	20	Fair	Black Locust	4	80
516	20	Good	Freeman Maple	Est. 4	80
542	20	Good	Linden	3	60
49	21	Good	Linden	3	63
443	21	Good	Red Oak	4	63
154	22	Good	Red Oak	4	88
160	22	Good	Linden	3	66
442	22	Good	White Pine	5	110
797	22	Good	Sweet Gum	4	88
302	23	Good	River Birch	3.5	80.5
660	23	Good	Sweet Maple	Est. 4	92
21	24	Good	Sugar Maple	5.5	132
156	24	Good	Red Oak	4	96
270	24	Good	Linden	3	72
512	24	Good	Sugar Maple	5.5	132
614	24	Good	Sweet Gum	4	96
143	26	Good	London Planetree	3	78
441	26	Good	Red Oak	4	104
19	28	Good	Thornless Honey Locust	4	112
22	28	Good	London Planetree	3	84
51	28	Good	Pin Oak	3	84
57	28	Good	Pin Oak	3	84
155	28	Good	Red Oak	4	112
159	28	Good	Linden	3	84
177	28	Good	Littleleaf Linden	3	84
330	28	Good	Pin Oak	3	84
336	29	Good	London Planetree	3	87
18	30	Good	London Planetree	3	90
55	30	Good	Pin Oak	3	90
371	30	Good	Pin Oak	3	90
381	30	Good	Red Oak	4	120
391	30	Good	Pin Oak	3	90
692	31	Good	Pin Oak	3	93
149	34	Good	Pin Oak	3	102

Their ages range from 48- 120 years old based on the size/factor equation. Their combined ages equal 4714.5 years!! What a legacy to treasure!

So many of these trees have been alive longer than most of us who live in the area.

Fifty-two are 60+ years old, making them true GOLDEN BUCKEYES. Twenty five are in their 80’s and 90’s (noted in bold type). Nine are over 100 years old!

The thirty-four trees that are eighty-to-well over one hundred years old have seen a lot. Historical references were found in Dublin (Images of America) by Nancy L. Richison.

The two 132-year-old sugar maples were saplings in 1884, the year before a town pump was installed at Bridge and High Streets to serve residents and horses pulling carts.

In 1912, a cyclone damaged the Methodist Episcopal and Presbyterian churches. The congregations joined the Christian church to become Dublin Community Church. Sugar maples, white pine, red oak, and honey locust were already growing and thriving.

Girls were first allowed to play on basketball teams at Dublin High School in 1921 and O’Shaughnessy Dam was built in 1925. Trees that began their growth in 1926 include sweet maple, red oak, sweet gum and pin oak and are over 90 years old.

The stone bridge crossing the Scioto was built as part of the Works Progress Administration Program in 1935. Sweet gum, Littleleaf Linden, London Planetree and numerous pin oaks had begun to grow.

The trees that are seventy-one years and older ushered in the era after WWII ended.

During Thanksgiving weekend in 1950, a freak snowstorm dumped 20 inches of snow and created drifts up to 25 feet deep. A diverse group of forty-five trees survived and thrive today.

I could go on and on with the number of changes and events that have occurred in Dublin over time. The rate of change brought about by people has increased, but nature’s timetable is a constant.

The fifty-eight trees on the list above are healthy and deserve the opportunity to flourish and enhance the property and the city of Dublin. It would be an absolute travesty for the City to grant a variance to kill these trees. Further, the Developer should be required to safeguard the above trees during the construction process. The City needs to have an active watchdog to assure these trees are saved.

Respectfully,

Becky Klosterman, Dublin resident since 1989

6801 Vineyard Haven Loop

Dublin, Ohio 43016