committee of five is busily studying a proposed

tree protection ordinance in hopes of making

recommendations to the county Planning Commission

soon.

Developer

Jeff Ellis, arborist/landscape architect Tim

Thoms, environmentalist Dennis Chase, engineer

Lawrence Otwell Sr., resident Connie Hayes and

county extension agent Sheldon Hammond were named

to the study committee recently by the Planning

Commission.

Planning

Commission members have spent several months

poring over proposed changes to county laws that

require tree retention and replacement at

development sites, and will discuss the matter

again during a work session Thursday at 7 p.m. in

suite 210 at the Fayette County Administrative

Complex.

Members

hope to have three more workshops with the study

committee before making final recommendations to

the county Board of Commissioners in January.

Among

changes recommended by county engineer Kirk

Houser, commissioners are considering increasing

the required total diameter of trees retained or

replaced on construction sites, plus giving more

weight to existing trees retained than for new

trees planted.

The

idea, said Houser, is to encourage retention of

older, larger native trees, and discourage the

bulldozing of all trees on construction sites,

replacing them with smaller, younger ornamental

trees.

Also

on the agenda Thursday, Planning Commission

members will discuss proposed changes to the

county subdivision regulations and development

regulations. The regulations govern everything

from pavement thickness to the storm drainage

methods in local subdivisions and other

developments.

Following

the discussion Thursday, the planning panel may

act on the regulations at its Dec. 2 meeting,

then pass them on to the County Board of

Commissioners for final action.

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