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Metro New York Clubs & Organizations Queens Boulevard Restoration Group Newsletter 5-3-2008 Over 50 Trees Planted on QB...Finally From The New York Daily News: New Trees Along Queens Blvd. BY MEHRNOOSH TORBATNEJAD Tuesday, April 22nd 2008, 4:00 AM New trees are beginning to dot the medians along Queens Blvd. after the city recently removed and replaced dozens of stumps - some of which had been there for as long as 20 years. Throughout Forest Hills and Rego Park, starting at 78th Ave., 48 tree stumps lined the roadway, said Stephen Melnick, founder of the Queens Blvd. Restoration Group. "It was becoming an eyesore," said Melnick, a Forest Hills resident and self-proclaimed tree lover. "People were calling the the massive roadway the 'Boulevard of Stumps.' " Since the inception four years ago of his organization, which monitors issues concerning Queens Blvd., Melnick has been urging City Hall and the Parks Department Forestry Division to remove the stumps. But because there were so many of them and the cost of removal and replacement was large - up to $2,000 per tree - a plan was not implemented until last November. The replacement project began in earnest about two weeks ago. As part of his PlaNYC initiative, Mayor Bloomberg has set a goal of planting one million trees in the city by 2017. This new project along Queens Blvd. is part of that initiative, Parks Department officials said. "Queens is our borough of trees," said agency spokeswoman Trish Bertuccio, who also commended Melnick's group for identifying the problem. When the trees were chopped down after succumbing to pollution or harsh weather, the stumps were never dug out. With the new trees, however, the pits have been enlarged to provide a wider area for water, with hopes that the trees will last longer, Melnick said. About 100,000 vehicles roll down the boulevard each day. As portions of Queens Blvd. are set to mark 75th anniversaries, the new trees will add greenery that once flanked the roadway years ago, Melnick said. "We wanted to bring life back to the area," he said. Others were also delighted. Harry Presti, 52, of Bayside, who had noticed the stumps before the project got under way, found them to be "disgusting," but was pleased with the replacement. "I need that in my neighborhood," Presti said. Call 311 to report a dead tree. Neighborhood Link Terms of Use © 1997,1998,1999 E.Central, Inc.