Letter: Excuses for cutting Howard Amon Park trees sound specious

The concerns expressed by readers in the July 31 Tri-City Herald about proposed tree removal in Richland’s Howard Amon Park neglected the environmental aspect (for those of you who believe that global warming is caused by man). Removing trees, which have a negative “carbon footprint,” to pave land for whatever reason (which, while the cement is curing, has a relatively large “carbon footprint”) will melt the polar icecaps.

Seriously, the excuses being made for cutting sound specious. I live close to a beautiful little park. The city has cut down several perfectly healthy trees to facilitate construction of a basketball court. There are municipal basketball courts within a half-mile radius of the park, along with those in the schools. I think the project was unnecessary. This is just one example of the rush to pave paradise.

Some in this area want to make the Tri-Cities into the big city. I think this is a mistake. When I moved here 25 years ago, I had just come from a job in Detroit. Trust me, this is not what we should aspire to. We have a good compromise between the small town and the big city. If you want to experience big city life, visit Seattle or Portland.

This story was originally published August 4, 2016 at 3:15 AM with the headline "Letter: Excuses for cutting Howard Amon Park trees sound specious."