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Council Member Williams discusses the importance of tree maintenance legislation
0:10:21
ยท
113 sec
Council Member Nantasha M. Williams expresses her support for the proposed legislation on tree maintenance prioritization. She emphasizes the significance of tree-related issues in her district and the need for transparency in the Parks Department's tree maintenance process.
- Williams highlights that trees are a top issue in her district, particularly old and poorly maintained trees.
- She criticizes the long turnaround time for addressing tree-related problems and the lack of transparency in prioritization.
- The council member emphasizes the bipartisan nature of the bill, with over 30 sponsors across New York City.
Nantasha M. Williams
0:10:21
Thank you.
0:10:22
I don't have a formal statement.
0:10:23
I just wanna thank the chair for hearing the bill.
0:10:28
When I first got elected, people would ask, like, what is the top issue in the district?
0:10:34
And I would say, trees.
0:10:35
And people would laugh because they're like, why are trees a problem?
0:10:38
And, trees are a problem because we have a lot of old trees, trees that are not properly maintained.
0:10:48
The calendar of of maintaining trees, the the process of that is, like, significantly also, like, delayed.
0:10:58
And I understand we have millions of trees, in New York City.
0:11:01
But for individuals who live in residential communities, the trees become a quality of life issue.
0:11:09
And the turnaround time for the parks department to address the tree related issue is extensively long.
0:11:20
And while I understand I already perused the testimony, while I understand that the parks department, I suppose, does this work internally as agency policy, it is my view that this should be public information.
0:11:35
It should be transparent.
0:11:36
People should understand, how you prioritize stream maintenance because most folks do not know.
0:11:44
It's like a a black hole.
0:11:46
I have a lot of other opinions about, how we maintain trees and how we rate trees because the tree pretty much has to be about to kill someone for the parks department to come out and do something, which, again, is just truly a problem for me.
0:12:00
So, I just wanna thank everyone who sponsored the bill.
0:12:03
It is a bipartisan bill.
0:12:05
I have, like, over 30 plus sponsors, so this is a wide range issue across New York City, and I just look forward to it passing.
0:12:13
Thank you.