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Politics & Government

Trees at Entry to Chuck Corica Golf Course Tagged for Removal to Accommodate Sewer Pump Station Work

City Council will be reviewing the proposal to remove them at its Dec. 6 meeting.

Five mature trees growing along the side of Clubhouse Memorial Road which leads into the Chuck Corica Golf Course have been tagged for removal by the Alameda Public Works Department.

Dated Nov. 16, the notices on each of the five trees indicate they can be removed no sooner than 14 days after the date of notification.

In actuality, however, they cannot be removed until after the Alameda City Council votes to approve their removal, according to Public Works Department Construction Manager Ahmed Aly. The matter will come before the City Council at its Dec. 6 meeting.

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According to Aly, the tree removal is necessary in order to retrofit and improve a sewer pumping station adjacent to the trees.

Aly said the project is the result of litigation against the East Bay Municipal Utility District that resulted in assessments being done to sewer pumping facilities such as this one.

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He said the rehab is mandated by the Environmental Protection Agency.

The pump station itself needs to be retrofitted with new pumps and a backup generator. Tree roots have also caused some damage to the station, Aly said. "The concern is about (sewage) overflow," he said. "This project was rated as high priority."

The sewer pump station is one of several on Bay Farm Island, but the one most in need of immediate improvement, according to Aly.

Prior to the trees being tagged, Aly said a representative from the Public Works Department met with the Golf Commission to inform them about the need for the tree removal. Residents within 300 feet of the project also received notices informing them about plans for cutting down the trees and were told the issue would be discussed at City Council's Dec. 6 meeting, according to Aly.

"Overall," said Aly, "there has been pretty positive feedback about the project."

New landscaping and extended fencing will be installed if and when the trees are removed, Aly said. Replacement landscaping proposed includes Yellow Trumpetvine, New Zealand Flax and Santa Cruz Island Buckwheat.

Although the site of the trees is just off Island Drive on Clubhouse Memorial Road, Aly said he does not anticipate traffic will be impacted by the tree removal or work on the pump station, should it occur, because the site is on private property. 

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