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news:
Trees to be removed
By Gabriel Lefrancois
Summer On-line Forty-Niner
Physical Planning
and Facilities Management will oversee a project to remove
Eucalyptus trees on the east wing of the Social Science and
Public Affairs Building to replace a decomposing membrane,
which stops water from entering the building, beginning in
two weeks at Cal State Long Beach.
For years, the
building has encountered problems with rain and moisture,
which has lead to partial flooding and erosion of the sub-floor
walls, according to Scott Charmack, associate vice president
of Physical Planning and Facilities Management. Charmack said
that this is the first time the project will be done correctly.
"We've tried
to fix it from the inside," Charmack said. "There
is no way to do it correctly if we don't do it from the outside."
An excessive amount
of digging will occur in order for contractors and landscapers
to reach the basement level of the deteriorated wall, approximately
12 feet, according Michael Kelly, assistant director of physical
planning.
The excess digging
will result in the removal of a group of Eucalyptus trees,
which have roots that extend down to the flank of the building.
The root structure
of the Eucalyptus is its vital support since the trees can
grow more than 100 feet. Strong winds or storms could easily
knock down the trees if some of the roots are removed, creating
a hazard on campus according to Kelly.
"We've tried
to save the trees, but there is no way we can complete the
project and keep it safe for students," Charmack said.
" Are we interested in waterproofing the building and
fixing it for good ?- there are no other ways of going about
it."
Jaime Higgins,
a CSULB graduate student expressed concern over the tree removal
atop Hardfact Hill to make way for a state-of-the-art science
facility. Higgins said she asked concerned teachers if they
would go on record to express their concern, but to her dismay,
they would not.
"Scott (Charmack)
explained to me that they did care about the tree removal
on Hardfact Hill" Higgins said. " He said that it
was a necessary step in order to complete the project and
that new trees would be planted."
Cato and Associates
will be the landscape architect of the project. Contractors
will be brought in from the state of California. Taking out
the Eucalyptus trees was the suggestion made by the landscape
architect, according to Kelly. The irrigation system will
be upgraded and Sycamore trees will be planted like the ones
adjacent to the west wing of the SSPA Building when the construction
phase of the project is completed.
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