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Forestry
The goal of Honor Heights Park is to provide a beautiful area for people and plants to interact. This goal is further exemplified in its arboreta, setting an aesthetically stirring backdrop for education, recreation, and meditation. The Arboreta at Honor Heights Park are individually funded through various memorial donations, state and local organizations, and matching grants from the USDA Forest Service....more
Overview of Forestry Division
The Muskogee Park Department Forestry Division employs a full-time Urban Forester and a four-person forestry crew. Seasonal responsibilities add two additional employees to this staff in late spring and summer. The Division’s responsibilities include tree risk assessment, planning future tree planting projects, planting those projects, and performing scheduled tree maintenance on all Park-owned properties, including: pruning, watering, herbicide/pesticide application, etc. Additional responsibilities include removal of dead/diseased trees on all public property (i.e., parks, etc.) and city rights-of-way—chipping all material possible. The chips produced are composted and used as mulch within city parks as well as in various tree-planting projects throughout the city.
City Tree Ordinance
Ordinance #3130-A, Article 2, Section 15-209 “The city shall have the right to plant, trim, spray, preserve and remove trees, plants, and shrubs within the lines of all streets, alleys, avenues, lanes, squares, and public grounds, as may be necessary to ensure safety when servicing city utilities or to preserve the symmetry and beauty of such public grounds." The Forestry Division will not remove live trees if the assessment determines the tree is healthy and possesses no immediate risk factors.
Definition of Right-of-Way
A right of way is a peculiar type of easement, being limited to use for passage only and is recognized as a superior type of easement where the owner of the right of way may let others use the property for other purposes and may even remove the underlying ground or minerals located therein.
Tree Removal Permit System
If you, as a property owner, would like an assessment of a hazardous tree on the right of way, please contact the Parks & Recreation office to make a report. Please allow five working days for the requested assessment. Afterward, the Forestry Division will contact the homeowner(s) with the outcome of the inspection. If it is the opinion of the Division that the tree should be removed, a Tree Removal Permit will be mailed to the said homeowner. Trees are not removed on a first come-first served basis; they will be prioritized as to the severity of risk. Tree Removal Agreement Form