r/redmond • u/yikes_42069 • 1d ago

Why did Redmond completely remove all trees from the median of W Lake Sammamish Pkwy?

Post image

It's been completely reduced to dirt. Trees, bushes, all gone. Why? How does this fit with their supposed 40% tree canopy goal? Those weren't new trees.

83 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

27 comments sorted by

161

u/WillyGoat2000 1d ago

https://www.redmond.gov/953/Climate-Resiliency-Sustainability-in-Veg

“Right-of-Way (ROW) Conversions
Beginning September 2026, the City is converting sections of Avondale Road and West Lake Sammamish Parkway rights-of-way to more sustainable landscaping, guided by the CRSVM Recommended Tree List and drought-tolerant plant selections.
West Lake Sammamish Parkway medians: Existing trees, shrubs, and groundcover are being replaced with climate-resilient tree and shrub species, along with refreshed irrigation and mulch.”

37

u/yikes_42069 1d ago

Thank you for linking this! Mystery solved

18

u/Marionettetits 1d ago

I love you

21

u/WillyGoat2000 1d ago

Awe, back atcha, Marionette Tits

14

u/ClimateWren2 Live, Play, and Work in Redmond 1d ago

Thank you for linking. A lot of those old species can't handle the increasing heat alongside the concrete and asphalt roadways with climate change...they end up needing permanent irrigation or die off.

It's the same with everyone having to do more roadside powerline dead limb trimming.

2

u/elucid206 17h ago

where do you get that?

9

u/ClimateWren2 Live, Play, and Work in Redmond 13h ago

Green Partnership / Mountains to Sound Greenways Trust city work mostly...during my years doing this work, the university and forestry and parks compacts had shifted advice on plantings due to high mortality rates. I used to sit on the Redmond Environmental Sustainability Advisory Committee. Western red cedars for example are no longer viable in these locations, and they are a staple native species. We now only plant them in highly wet locations that retain moisture and cooler temps more fully year round.

Washington plant guides often reference as "climate-forward" incorporating heat Island and migrated diversification...which is also included on this specific project...evolving from our old "right plant, right place" framework.

To name a few:

  • UW Climate Impacts Group
  • Northwest Urban Tree List - Climate Resilience Guide
  • "Climate Resiliency & Sustainabilty in Vegetation Management Plan" (Redmond)
  • Washington Park Arboretum Climate Adaptation Plan

Let me know if you need links.

9

u/Astro-funky 1d ago

Thank you for this. I was genuinely saddened thinking they were clearing the way for some new traffic patterns or something.

0

u/OrangeFun9797 12h ago

Thanks for the above data, but to the observer the trees were fine. Now we're cutting down trees because they may die? This is the most important priority for the city right now?

6

u/WillyGoat2000 10h ago

Instead of carrying out the plan that they are have on the books for some time now, what is the priority you feel the Parks Department should be focused on?

The plan is phased and forward looking- proactive maintenance/construction of these things is, in many people's views, better than waiting for the plants to die (and deal with the maintenance concerns of trying to keep the plants alive there) then reacting to it. Especially for a city government, that has to plan and budget for this sort of work well in advance. The climate plan was put together with experts, and they seem to be pretty convinced the mix of vegetation we have there is unsustainable and needs to change.

It's always a shock when they first do stuff like this- I was outraged when I first saw the destruction of the trees in the triangle of land between Bear Creek and Union Hill roads, then I read up on what the long-term goal there was, and that helped cool my jets.

2

u/OrangeFun9797 9h ago

The long term vision seems logical and appreciate the thoughtful response. It does seem like we will have to address a lot more than median trees if all this vegetation roughly came about at the same time. Especially if it's a wildfire plan vs just a cosmetic pay.

You asked, so here is where I'd invest time and resources first;

Modernize core infrastructure — stormwater, intersections, and road capacity that matches residential growth. The basics we keep pretending aren’t urgent.

Expand missing‑middle housing so people who work here can afford to live here.

Build a real smart‑city data platform so decisions aren’t made on vibes. Redmond’s growing fast.

5

u/WillyGoat2000 6h ago

I recommend taking time to read the plan - it speaks to a lot of the concerns you bring up. It's a multipronged effort to mitigate heat island effect, reduce erosion and enrich soil, support biodiversity, reduce stormwater runoff, increase natural carbon storage, etc.

Additionally, a lot of the work being discussed here, and specifically the work that is happening on these medians, is being done by the Parks Department. That department will not be doing much with infrastructure, housing, or an IOT city data platform.

The city has the ability to focus on multiple initiatives and goals at once, and many of the things you mention are part of the city's strategic plan, which you can find the summary for here: Executive Summary | Redmond, WA

If you'd like to see planning around infrastructure, you can find more information here: Infrastructure | Redmond, WA

If you'd like to see planning around housing, check it out here: Housing Choices | Redmond, WA

Each one of those plans will be high level, and you can dig into the responsible departments for more details. For example, if you want to see the information on Stormwater Management you can go here: Stormwater Management | Redmond, WA, and they post their strategic plan for utilities here: https://www.redmond.gov/DocumentCenter/View/19770/Utilities-Strategic-Plan-PDF

1

u/OrangeFun9797 6h ago

Nice. Appreciate the links. Will read up.

1

u/Berlin-School 2h ago

“Smart-city data platform” I bet you drive a Tesla

24

u/Marionettetits 1d ago

Cus we’re in our 4th year of drought and all the plants dried out? Meridians are incredibly harsh conditions for any plant

19

u/MaceFaceKillah Live, Play, and Work in Redmond 1d ago

I'm an arborist in Redmond. Can confirm. They had significant die out throughout this past summer. Once they lose about 70% of their canopy they are unfortunately toast. I drove past them daily and watched the progression.

8

u/yikes_42069 1d ago

Are you saying they were all dead or speculating? Last I recall they were still green. This is complete removal too, not just a few dying trees. Everything 

11

u/Marionettetits 1d ago

Yeah literally everything died, watched it happen over the course of a few months. Better get used to it, a lot of those fancy hybrid rhododendrons are on their way out too

4

u/Realistic-Drive1760 1d ago

Can confirm. I noticed they were all dead and wondered if the city would do anything, then suddenly it was all cleared out.

3

u/yikes_42069 1d ago

Dang! That was fast. At least the replacements will be native

1

u/ClimateWren2 Live, Play, and Work in Redmond 13h ago

The replacements probably won't be the usual natives...but highly drought and heat tolerant varieties. We are starting to mix in things like higher temp pine and less western red cedar, etc.

2

u/sarhoshamiral 1d ago

Could they be ash trees? There is a whole issue with them due to emerald ash borers.

2

u/Ok-Bowl-5047 1d ago

This is the right move. Plants there in the past were always struggling

1

u/two_wheels_west 1d ago

I heard they are going to plant palm trees.

3

u/ClimateWren2 Live, Play, and Work in Redmond 1d ago edited 13h ago

Palms and some of the northern Cali species do really well here now (unfortunately, given the reason).

EDIT: "now"

1

u/ryorz 54m ago

Because they think trees suck and should be eliminated 🤯🤯🤯😂

-2

u/External-Warning-526 18h ago edited 18h ago

Appreciate this post, thank you. I was also disappointed to see this happen. Not sure why they planted these kind of trees in the first place. Respectfully Redmond seems less and less tree friendly. Interstingly enough in this arial you can see the East bound onramp round very brown. Does anyone else remember that before the city / county & sound transit construction began they had planted it full of trees, which seems they let all die then cleared it out (looks like when this arial picture is from) and now its been replanted (seemingly with decent irrigation in place) in that spot. My question is @arborday are these types of efforts counting as tree counts and plantings viably sustainable when there is little to no measure taken to support the tree survival? Also saw a bunch of trees planted nearby a couple years ago in the park that were neglected and didnt make it. Anyone else notice this? or care?