An almost perfect location for an arborist to live

macrocarpa

macrocarpa

Branched out member
Location
Midwest
As I search for a new city/state to relocate to, I have thought about all the things I want in a new location.

At the top of my list is:

a well planned and semi to mature well cared for urban forest. Someplace that proper tree pruning is normal and topping is the rarity. Tree lined neighborhoods and lush greenery.

Bike friendly area with nice parks throughout the city. parks easily accessible from neighborhoods with sidewalks. greenways/greenspace/trail connectivity already in place and ready to be enjoyed.

Outdoor recreation within the city but also large tracks of forest land outside of the city for backpacking, fishing, kayaking, etc.

So, I figure since most of us seem to have similar interests (trees, outdoor recreation, etc) Does anyplace come to mind that fits the above description?
 
I too would like to find this place you mention. Looking to relocate to somewhere in the near future. Anyone??
 
Up until 15 minutes ago I'd say you were describing right where I live. We are less than an hour from Banff which is pretty world famous for skiing and other outdoor rec. And if that's too busy there are even more awesome places just as close. Lots of bike paths, low crime. Great parks and natural areas.
But I just drove past a house a couple of blocks from here and saw how ***** Tree Service finished the job I saw them starting yesterday. It would look right at home on your tree expose video. maybe even worse. I'm so bummed, I want to hit something.
 
I'm finding that Austin meet some of those criteria...but does get a bit warm :)

The populace and city hall are very tree-centric here. Lots of bike lanes. You'll get a ticket on your bike if you violate a motor vehicle law too...it goes both ways.
 
State College PA would fit your criteria. A little slim in the bike trail area, but the mid state trail is a project of the Penn State Outing Club that just about bisects the state N to S and passes within about 7 or 8 miles of down town. Also some of the best wild trout fishing in the east. I would give body parts to be able to move back there. Should have never left. And what remains of the Mall Elms are awe inspiring.
 
Berkeley/Oakland, California fits a lot of your criteria. Very Bike friendly. I biked almost exclusively when I lived there - I put 4k miles on my car in 2 years, and even bought a bike cargo trailer for hauling groceries/tools around. The whole area is bordered by the East Bay Regional Park District with tons of hiking/biking/camping. Hard to beat temperatures that max out at 35 on the low end and 85 on the high end, on average. Lots of pretty, mature trees too - Sequoia sempervirens, California live oak, Norfolk Island pines, dawn redwoods, stone pines, sycamores, euks, and on and on and on.

It is EXPENSIVE to live there though, unfortunately...
 
How do you like chattanooga? just out of curiosity?

Chatt seems to be further along in arboriculture than most the rest of TN. Helfull that chatt has an excellent urban forester.
 
I've been researching parts of oregon like joshua mentioned. that temperate climate sounds nice for working and outdoor rec seems to be big out there. But I wanna explore all options. Now that I have a daughter I think about things I never considered before, like sidewalks. We don't have sidewalks in neighborhoods here. I grew up in various parts of the midwest and I played on sidewlaks from sun up to sundown. Just stuff like that comes to light. but also with no sidewalks we dont have that patch of city owned grass between the sidewalk and curb, so not many tree lined streets either. Its amazing what tree lined streets do for the feel of a neighborhood. If you've gott'em, enjoy'em!
 
Saskatoon is among the best places to live in the world.
the bike lanes are still in the infant stage. They end in bad spots. We do have nice tree lined streets, mainly old elms.

On the down side it gets down to -40 for some of the winter
It was once cheap to live here, but its been getting worse.
 
[ QUOTE ]
How do you like chattanooga? just out of curiosity?

Chatt seems to be further along in arboriculture than most the rest of TN. Helfull that chatt has an excellent urban forester.

[/ QUOTE ]

I love Chattanooga.

The two mountains that surround the city have amazing trees, as well as the old neighborhoods like my own that are in the valley.

Our urban forester, Gene Hyde, is the man. He helped start Take Root with my friend (who happens to be a really good climber) Preston Roberts. They've been planting tons of trees in the urban core of the city over the last 3 years, and it's an impressive array of species for a street tree planting program.

As far as tree services go, there is much to be desired. Without intending to sleight anyone that I don't know about who works in Chattanooga who might be reading this, I only know of one solid company - ABC Tree Service. One of their climbers is a buzzer - BJ Absher. They're a really good company. Apart from them, there's a lot of the typical nonsense that happens everywhere though - topping, spiking up trees to install Cobra systems...
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But back to the city, it's a nice size for a smaller town, and there's more outdoor activity than you could ever do in your lifetime - tons of rock climbing and creek boating if you're into that, just outside the city limits. Then, T-wall and the Ocoee River are within striking distance.

Some great local breweries and coffee roasters to boot.
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Don't know how long I'll be here, but I love it!
 
oppo,

I took a tour of chatts urban forestry program and sat in on a couple TUFC meetings. Seems like a pretty cool city that takes urban forestry seriously. However I have reserved the southern part of the country as "a place to visit" and X'ed it off my "places to move to list" too hot. Having sweaty, soaked underwear and socks just after loading up tools in the morning.....uuhhhggg!

porcu,

I google mapped pics of saskatoon. Your not kidding about the elm tree lined streets, Dang! What kind of maintenance program takes care of all those elms? Do they need special treatment up there?
 
Alberta and Saskatchewan are about the last Dutch Elm Disease (DED) free places left on Earth (I think). But there are lots of efforts underway to keep it like that. No one thinks its a done deal. Saskatchewan recently lost most of its funding to keep DED out and concerned citizens have taken over the vigil. In Alberta the STOPDED organization is gathering momentum so maybe we can keep the drsaded disease out of the Province. We have been battling European elm scale here but treatment via imidacloprid injection seem to be working. At least on elms I've worked on.
Seriously though Porcu is not kidding about the minus 40. That's a low but the minus 30s show up every winter and that's without windchill. But you would not be getting sweaty soaked underwear and socks any time of year fer sure.
And just as a wierd side note, Alberta is rat-free too. Another long-standing protection peculiar to here.
Sask has rats but their elms are bigger tha ours.
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Chatt sounds nice to me! Not so cold. Maybe I'll move there.
 
Cool! I'd love to see, climb & prune those elms. But -40, call me a wimp but thats a little too much for me. Went backpacking this weekend and I was chilly sleeping in 25 degrees.

"Chatt sounds nice to me! Not so cold. Maybe I'll move there."

I'd be sure to do plenty of research 1st!
 
Savannah Was an amazing tree city. At least downtown was, i didnt see much of the rest of the place. There was even a tree growing out of the middle of the street.
 
Look into areas that concentrate universities and research. Educated people tend to take care of their trees.

Chattanooga would be awesome but from what I've heard, it's really competitive in terms of customers... some big outfits have tried to get in there and failed.
 
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