Opinions

A tacky problem

Among the things that make Chestnut Hill the special place that it is are its trees. The trees that were planted on Chestnut Hill’s side streets in the early part of the 20th century have grown large and have formed a canopy cooling off the neighborhood on hot summer days. In the latter part of the 20th century, the Chestnut Hill Community Association planted street trees along Germantown Avenue, giving the business district an appearance more akin to William Penn’s “Greene Countrie town” than many cookie-cutter shopping areas across America.

What is not “Greene Countrie Town”— the concept used by leaders of the CHCA and the Chestnut Hill Business Association in the 1950s and 1960s to create an aesthetically-pleasing and welcoming shopping area — are the increasing number of flyers announcing everything from yard sales to lost pets that have been thumb-tacked or stapled to the bark of the trees.

In Philadelphia, where the Fairmount Park Commission is in charge of street trees, it is illegal to hang signs on trees. Section 401 of City Ordinance 15-203 states that “No person shall fasten or maintain any sign on any tree, tree guard, or support thereof except as otherwise permitted by the Philadelphia Code” according to the City of Philadelphia’s Web site link for Fairmount Park (www.phila.gov/FairmountPark).

A page on the city of Chicago’s Web site (www.cityofchicago.org/Env/CityTrees/Etiquette.html), points out that hanging signs is not good for trees and that signs should be hung on something that is not alive. “String and wire left on trees indefinitely can kill a branch — or even an entire tree — by girdling it,” the Web site says. “A tree's circulatory system is located just beneath the bark in the xylem and phloem layers, which transport water and nutrients between the leaves and roots. String or wire can cut through these vital layers as the tree grows, literally cutting off its circulatory system. Likewise, Christmas decorations should be removed right after the holiday season. Strings of lights and tape can also girdle trees if left on too long."

While I am not against finding lost pets or having yard sales  — or, for that matter hanging homemade signs that give a neighborhood a small-town feel — I do not like seeing signs on trees.

Let the trees live and Chestnut Hill retain its “Greene Countrie town” ambience.

Katie Worrall