Town Council: Miles of Loomis roads marked for tree pruning

Shaggy Loomis roads are getting a "haircut" next week, so to speak. Loomis Town Council approved a contract this month to trim overgrown trees along miles of major Loomis street frontages in the public right-of-way, with a focus on pruning for clearance. "Some of the town's trees have grown to where the top of the canopy is often shaped by passing semi-trucks," said Loomis town engineer Merrill Buck. In certain areas, the sides of trees often encroach beyond the edge of the roadway and into the shoulder, creating a hazard. That can block important street signs and force pedestrians and cyclists into the street, according to Buck. Tree trims will be at Saunders Avenue, Horseshoe Bar Road, Laird Road, Barton Road, Rocklin Road, Wells Avenue, Taylor Road, Magnolia Street, Holly Street, Webb Street, Callison Street, Walnut Street, Oak Street, King Road, Sierra College Boulevard, Bankhead Road and Delmar Avenue. Loomis Town Council and staff held a strategic planning workshop at the Blue Goose Event Center last April. One item that came up for discussion was the town's tree fund. Established under a 2014 ordinance, the fund requires an in-lieu fee if property owners remove certain species of oak trees and don't replace them or have them planted in other areas approved by the town. The fund has grown to $375,000 without an action plan for spending it, according to Buck. In examining the town's needs, a tree pruning project is an allowable expenditure, officials said. Loomis Municipal Code states that in addition to tree planting or purchasing, in-lieu funds can be used for maintenance and preservation activities, which includes tree pruning. The project's scope will include tree pruning, primarily along the town's arterial and collector streets corridors. Trees will be pruned for a 16-foot horizontal clearance from the top of pavement, plus a three-foot vertical clearance beyond the edge of roadway. The project will also include removing a "handful" of trees that are either diseased or structurally unsound, according to Buck. A request for proposals for tree service was posted online in January, distributed to local building-exchange plan rooms and advertised twice in The Loomis News. A single bid came from West Coast Arborist, Inc., a large company founded in 1972 with more than 1,000 full-time employees. West Coast Arborist provides tree service to hundreds of communities across the state and has the equipment and skills Loomis needs, officials said. The company performed similar work for Sacramento, Roseville and Citrus Heights. The contract is for $100,000, according to the report. If more work is needed beyond that, staff will return to Loomis Town Council for more funding. Work on the project is set to begin next week and will take roughly one month to finish. The contract will remain open through the end of 2022 in case more work is needed. Buck said the contract can be extended at the town's discretion for up to three more one-year terms beyond the initial agreement. Roadway pruning work is tentatively set to begin next Monday. Loomis Public Works director Dave Strock said he has certain streets that he wants trimmed first, including Saunders Avenue. Buck said most of the work will be on busy arterial or collector streets with one lane of traffic allowed in each direction. Crews will have flaggers to safely stop and direct cars around the work zone with one "reversible lane," Buck said.