THE LEAFLET

For Casey Trees, June 6th, 2023, was a bizarre day for tree advocacy. We learned that Ward 8 Councilmember Trayon White would be introducing legislation to remove three trees in the public right-of-way on the 400 block of Xenia Street SE. The legislation was called the Xenia Street Tree Location Emergency Declaration Resolution of 2023.

It was strange to see an emergency declaration for tree removal on the legislative agenda – tree removal is rarely, if ever, a legislative emergency. Even stranger was later that day, over 20 minutes of the DC Council’s 9th Legislative Meeting was dedicated to discussing the removal of the trees. At the end of the discussion, Councilmember White removed the amendment and Chairman Mendelson even expressed surprise, that “we spent this much time on the issue of removing three trees”.

A month later, at the Council’s 12th legislative meeting, Councilmember White withdrew the bill completely, based on a compromise made with DDOT to treat the American Linden trees with growth inhibitors. Councilmember White was clear to say in his withdrawal of the legislation that he was “working for the people” and was representing Ward 8 residents.

An article published in The Atlantic this past week illuminated that although the bill was drafted by Councilmember White’s office, the vast majority of the outrage originated elsewhere. One man, the owner of a nearby building and president of the Xenia Condominium Owners Association, has been solely advocating for the removal of these trees for years while claiming to represent the community at large.

The author of the article, Jerusalem Demsas, sought first-hand testimony and interviewed community members:

“I wanted to see the trees for myself. In the weeks following White’s proposed emergency resolution, I visited the quiet residential street on three separate occasions, asking people if they had any thoughts about the trees. No one I interviewed registered strong opinions, or had even heard of the controversy”.

Additionally, the community had been involved from the beginning, and did not oppose the planting. Per Councilmember Charles Allen’s testimony, DDOT’s Urban Forestry Division notified and engaged the community in 2019, prior to the planting. The trees were planted in 2020, and in 2021, a few trees were even removed by UFD in compromise with the building owner’s complaints. The city acted faithfully and engaged the community, but it still wasn’t enough to please this one building owner.

We have experienced this challenge at Casey Trees too. Sometimes a loud minority will drown out what we know to be true – that people want trees! Those who hear that DC’s community does not want trees, or wants them removed, should approach the claim with skepticism. The trees on Xenia Street were planted there because the greater community supported the planting of trees, or at minimum, were indifferent and they did not want the city to spend time and resources on removing trees that had already been planted.

Casey Trees represents thousands of DC residents city-wide that support our tree canopy. In fact, when people contact us, they are usually frustrated about the lack of green space and trees in their neighborhood.

To be clear – the fault isn’t necessarily with Councilmember White or the building owner. Demsas describes the greater issue of community engagement and who gets the city’s ear:

“Because so few people vote in local elections, the power of those who speak up and claim to speak for their neighborhoods is hard to challenge. If a homeowner’s association headed by the neighborhood busybody says he speaks for you, are you showing up to contest that claim? If everyone engaged as he did—called and emailed and attended meeting after meeting, filed complaints with everyone from the office of the inspector general on down—his power would dilute instantly. No one can claim to speak for a community if everyone’s speaking for themselves”.

This is why Casey Trees knows that the advocacy work we do to restore, enhance, and protect our city’s tree canopy is important. We speak for the trees, and consequently, thousands of volunteers, donors, citizen scientists, community activists, and concerned neighbors too. You can learn more and support our advocacy efforts, and any DC resident can request a free tree planted on their property. Together, we can speak for our community, and for the trees.

Thank you to The Atlantic for permission to print short excerpts from their original article: Trees? Not in My Backyard: A story about three trees, an angry “community,” and power in Washington, D.C. – by Jerusalem Demsas.

You can also watch the June 6th 2023 DC Council Legislative Meeting in its entirety. The Xenia Street Tree Location Emergency Declaration Resolution starts about 41 minutes into the meeting.