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8- 27FLIP Page 1 <br /> Urban Forestry Service Profile <br /> Transcription of Flip Charts from August 27, 1996 <br /> Operating Environment - External Trends and Internal Conditions <br /> Education about reasonable risk will reduce workload and decrease calls. Developers will protect trees as <br /> they grow because they'll know that if they invest now, they'll pay less later. <br /> Trend toward planting trees that don't damage the infrastructure. <br /> There is a desire to preserve trees which creates more conflicts to resolve. <br /> There are increased expectations of the staff to serve as many customers as possible - -an increased demand <br /> for service. <br /> The more you do, the more work there is to do. If you plant more trees, you have to maintain them. Many <br /> more requests for new trees. More involvement with PDD. <br /> The lack of a tree inventory leaves the city out of sync with the national trend. <br /> New technology, such as sidewalk conflicts and new tree species are expensive. <br /> There are increased costs of doing business, new standards <br /> Unwanted volunteers are planting trees in the wrong spots. It's bad PR if staff cuts them down. <br /> The increased demand for public infrastructure (development activity) requires Engineering to complete <br /> projects quickly, sometimes with insufficient planning time for consideration of trees. This creates more <br /> changes in the field that require Urban Forestry staff to respond. This unknown impact from infrastructure <br /> projects creates emergencies for staff. <br /> There is now more coordination between divisions and departments such as Wetlands, Open Space. <br /> Political opinion about trees changes -- environmental vs. development. <br /> Fewer dollars are available from the Federal Government. <br /> Designers get ahead of public opinion. <br /> Litigation - -there is an increased fear of liability. Some staff stress caution, some would prefer to take a risk. <br /> Priorities change. Resources have been shifted from responding to calls to a more planned hazard pruning. <br /> A more managed, systematic care program makes people mad. A shift in resources has also gone from <br /> infrastructure (taking care of the Urban Forest) to regulatory actions. <br /> Operating Environment Continued. <br />