Why did you succeed in one fell swoop this time?, Tree Industry Committee | Tree | Community that hasn't been repaired in 10 years

Camphor trees stretch endlessly, and the shadows of trees cascade onto the avenue. Not far from the main entrance of Jindu Huahao Yueyuan Community in Minhang District, Shanghai, three camphor trees with signs stand in front of the neighborhood committee.

The sign is not an introduction to the trees, but reads: "Retract Pruning," "Deep Pruning," and "Regular Pruning.".

These are three "model trees".

In this sub new community with nearly 20 years of age, lush green trees were once a selling point that attracted many residents to settle down, but later became a problem for some residents. Since then, the tree repair project has spanned a decade and has been constantly being repaired and stopped, with constant contradictions: the needs of residents conflict with tree repair standards; Residents lack trust in the leadership team of the property committee... Last year, the project was restarted, and this year there has finally been a substantial breakthrough. Trimming the template tree is the first step.

Why are there many obstacles to seemingly simple tree pruning in residential areas? And where exactly are the variables that crack all of this now hidden?

Trees in Changing Communities: From "Highlights" to "Obstacles"

In the evening, residents of Jindu Flower Garden gathered in the community park to chat. An old man in the crowd was a bit unhappy and said, "Well, now that the tree is being repaired and not repaired, I don't know what the problem is."

Repairing trees, placed more than a decade ago, was something that would have angered the public in this community - once the community was lush with trees, which was a great attraction for newcomers to settle here.

But more than a decade after the construction of the community, camphor trees block the sky and the sun, and also block the sunlight of lower level residents. Excessive greenery has become an obstacle to the lives of some residents.

Almost all residents who advocate for tree repair have reported a similar statement: "There is no sunlight all year round, and the house is dark.". "It's not convenient for elderly people to sunbathe and it's not good for their health," an old man added. Another person stood up excitedly from the bench and gestured, "It also affects safety. What should we do if the tree is so close to the house and its roots reach the residential building?" Residents also described this to members of the property committee during the preliminary public opinion survey for tree repair.

At the end of August, the situation of trees that have not been trimmed in the community. Zhang Chao provided pictures

The main street trees in Jindu Huahao Yueyuan Community are camphor trees, accounting for over 40%. Camphor tree has a well-developed root system and a thick main root. Community Secretary and Neighborhood Committee Director Liu Junli has heard of several cases of tree roots growing into houses. Some branches even reached into the bathroom and pierced through the toilet, saying, "We can only saw off the roots of the tree first before repairing the toilet.".

The tree continues to grow wildly, with some invisible hidden dangers. During the typhoon season, when a tree branch blows, it hits the windows of residents, shattering the glass. Some tree roots penetrate through the walls, causing the houses to loosen. Compared to some homeowners who require greenery, safety issues are even more urgent. As Zhang Chao, a member of the Industry Committee, introduced, "Tree cultivation has long been the trend."

Zhang Chao is the youngest member of the new community committee, and this 35 year old man is the main force in promoting tree pruning. After moving to the community in 2020, he wanted to solve the problem of parking difficulties and volunteered to participate in the election of the property committee. Unexpectedly, the first tricky task he did after joining the property committee was to repair trees.

This is not the first time Wang Lanhua has encountered a community with such lush growth of trees. He is the project leader of the community's tree pruning project, engaged in tree pruning for more than 20 years. "There are many communities like Shanghai, especially old ones. In my eyes now, any community that needs to be repaired looks the same."

The work before repairing trees is the most difficult. In many old neighborhoods, the initial tree repair initiative usually comes from high-rise residents on the fifth and sixth floors; For middle and lower level residents, "more greenery and more oxygen is always good.".

The level of cultivation also requires attention. Six or seven years ago, a residential area in Yangpu underwent a pruning due to the problem of trees blocking the sunlight of residential buildings. However, at that time, there was little experience and they did not dare to make extensive repairs. The firepower was not strong enough, and within a year or two, the problem of light blocking came back.

Sui Weian, the director of the community's property committee, said that during the subsequent repair, he kept an eye on the workers, fearing that the residents who supported the tree repair would let the workers chop too much, and also fearing that the opposing residents would obstruct the construction process, putting the workers in a dilemma. But disputes still exist. A retired teacher living on the first floor had the most intense reaction to pruning trees. He loves greening and has turned his yard into a garden. Sui Weian came to persuade, "Look, your tree has grown to the second and third floors, and everyone is just careful to cut off some of your tree branches. Why can't the trees in the community be treated like this?" The opposition finally accepted his statement.

The trees in the newly trimmed community. Photo by Wu Yuqing

Fix the "trust crisis"

Before the arrival of summer, 45% of the progress in pruning trees in the community has been completed. However, for residents who have not yet pruned trees in front of their homes, they still anxiously ask the team in charge of tree pruning in the community, "When will it be done here?"

"We pruned the surrounding trees from small to large according to the building number this time, because the smaller the building number, the earlier the residential building was built, and the higher the urgency of pruning the trees." Zhang Chao quickly explained.

Some residents also went to the community secretary and neighborhood committee director Liu Junli to express their concerns, "Secretary, please help fix the trees at my doorstep first. I'm afraid you might fix a few and not fix them again, just like last time.".

In 2018, there was a conflict in the community due to tree repair. At that time, the General Office of the Shanghai Municipal People's Government issued the "Three Year Action Plan for Building a Beautiful Home in Residential Communities in Shanghai", and Jindu Huahao Yueyuan also received a project fund. The business committee took the opportunity to raise the issue of tree repair.

At the beginning of the project, less than 10 trees were pruned, but they were forced to terminate due to complaints from residents. As for why they ultimately gave up, opinions vary from all sides. But the main reason is that it was done too casually. According to the recollection of many residents, the pruning of trees was just a random chopping of branches. "Some trees simply cut off the branches below, which must have exceeded the pruning standards," Wang Lanhua judged.

The densely growing trees in the community. Zhang Chao provided pictures

Therefore, when the tree repair project was suspended due to high temperatures this summer, residents were particularly sensitive. Wang Lanhua explained that in early 2022, the Shanghai Municipal Greening and Urban Appearance Bureau and the Municipal Housing Management Bureau jointly issued a notice on further regulating the pruning of trees in residential areas, which stipulated: "Tree pruning in residential areas should be carried out before spring sprouting or after the growth of tree branches stops in autumn, avoiding extreme cold and high temperature weather." "Workers sweating a lot on it will dehydrate. Moreover, trees cannot bear it, and water loss is too fast," he told residents.

In Zhang Chao's view, "The issue of pruning trees in this community is particularly sensitive, and it can trigger a whole body."

Before this year, the mentality of most residents had always been "eager to repair trees, but not confident in handing over the tree repair project to the property committee."

The bottom floor residents who have to turn on lights at home during the day because the light is blocked by trees. Photo by Wu Yuqing

"I heard that at that time, the property committee, including the neighborhood committee, was relatively passive in handling the situation. In addition, there was a small group composed of residents who complained strongly, and the trust of the property committee was lost. The conflicts in the community were triggered by the small matter of tree repair." This is the truth that Zhang Chao later learned.

"The previous neighborhood committee had a bad reputation among residents. When they started a project, they said they wanted to make money," said Liu Junli, the secretary of the neighborhood committee, helplessly. Zhu Fang smiled beside, indicating that she was used to hearing such a statement. She is an old resident of the community and currently serves as the director of the property committee.

Liu Junli remembers that she reported to the neighborhood committee at the end of April 2019, and the neighborhood committee secretary had already resigned for four months. "When I came, there was no neighborhood committee secretary, and the property committee was basically at a standstill. At that time, the property committee and the homeowners had already been fighting for a second time, and a month later, they told me to resign and not do it." Tree repair was just one of the straw that overwhelmed the camel, raising property fees, parking management fees... Once the trust chain between the homeowners and the property committee was broken, any action would become difficult.

The new business council election in 2020 took more than a year to successfully form. Liu Junli values unity the most. "In this session of the property committee, everyone can showcase their expertise." "The director is a resident resident of the neighborhood committee and is very convenient in reception and skilled in mediation. The deputy director has an economic mind and is good at dealing with people. The young man has good writing skills, understands writing articles, and online promotion..." However, what impressed Liu Junli the most was the harmony among the members and her genuine desire to do things for the residents.

Repairing the trust relationship between residents and the neighborhood and property committees is the first step. Liu Junli decided to start with small things and solve the problems of disorderly parking at the entrance and community garbage, "at least to make residents feel that the property committee is doing something."

The west gate of the community happens to be an intersection, and many people will stop temporarily. Residents are unable to turn around and cannot see oncoming vehicles, making it easy for traffic accidents to occur. The business committee spent a little money installing a pedestrian car isolation fence at the entrance and extending it to the road. There are no complaints now.

In June 2021, the property committee decided to strike while the iron was hot and solve the problem of garbage in the community. Many residents have complained that the capacity of the garbage room in the community is insufficient. The garbage bin was full, so everyone began to pile it up randomly nearby, "like a mountain." The neighborhood committee and the property committee discussed and decided to build an additional garbage bin room next to the original garbage point, which would cost about 150000 yuan. After being approved by all the owners, the construction was completed, and some owners specifically told Zhang Chao that it was done quite well.

The members of the business committee feel that with these preparations, it is time to put pruning trees back on the agenda. The community has a large number of trees, involving a high amount of money, and must be publicly tendered. Making a plan is the first step. At that time, the property management committee required participating companies to design all detailed plans before the owners' meeting, in order to facilitate residents' voting.

Residents oriented communication work is updated in real time through the official account of the community, and the pruning scheme is also the most important issue of offline residents' reception day.

On reception days, we sometimes receive residents who don't want to repair trees. "Why do we need to do it? Our greenery is so good!" The business committee arranges for residents who support and oppose it to exchange opinions face-to-face in the conference room, breaking the assumption that the business committee will profit from it. Residents who do not want to repair trees often silently leave after hearing other people's sufficient reasons for repairing trees.

The trees in the community seriously affect the residents. Photo by Wu Yuqing

How exactly should I fix it?

But Zhang Chao still realized that in the first half of the year, many residents became very sharp and sharp when repairing trees in the community. A special-shaped tree was reported as soon as it was trimmed.

"This is the largest tree," said an old man. "It took at least three or four hours to repair and was almost bald, but because the tree was originally not in good shape," Zhang Chao recalled.

To avoid a repeat of the situation in 2018, Zhang Chao sought help from friends working in related fields and invited experts from the town greening bureau to conduct on-site inspections on "which trees need to be repaired and how to repair them.".

Under the advice of experts, three demonstration trees appeared at the entrance of the community neighborhood committee. These three trees, which have been trimmed to varying degrees, have explanatory notes hanging around their necks - retractable pruning, deep pruning, and regular pruning.

This is not the first time the community has repaired a model tree. As early as 2021, the community invited professional units to trim two model trees. Zhang Chao said that the main purpose of doing this is to tell the residents that it is not just about cutting off their heads when it comes to tree repair. "Cutting off the head" refers to the most extensive retraction pruning, which basically only retains the main trunk of the tree, and all branches will be pruned, which is also the most controversial pruning method among residents.

Three sample trees with different pruning methods in the community. Respondents provide pictures

More than 400 meters away from Jindu Huahao Yueyuan, the Haoshi Phoenix City community had a sharp conflict over tree repair in 2021. The report from that time can still be found online - "Over 600 camphor trees and over 100 magnolia trees in the community have been 'retracted' pruned.".

"At that time, many trees that were not even close to residential buildings and did not affect lighting were also cut down," some residents remember. In order to prevent this large-scale "decapitation and pruning", residents have illegally parked their private cars next to some large trees to block the mechanical arms of pruning trees from approaching. More than a year later, residents of the Phoenix community pointed to the trees and sighed, "It's been a long time since they've grown better, but they still don't look good." The pruned trees gradually sprouted and formed a neat and round crown.

In recent years, due to the one size fits all approach of shrinking and pruning, many residential communities have filed complaints with government departments. Last year, there were even many trees in an old community in Yangpu that could not survive after being repaired.

With these lessons learned from previous experiences, Jindu Huahao Yueyuan has decided to design a plan for each tree based on the registration needs of residents.

On two resident reception days, the 14 page registration form was densely packed. "To the west of No. 212, there is a strong desire to remove the trees and leaves behind them." "At the entrance of No. 136-139, all six large trees have grown to the 6th floor, and there are only four planned to be pruned from the top of the trees." After writing, the remarks only list a row of "same as above." ".

After summarizing, it was found that the demand for pruning trees among residents is generally divided into two categories. Due to the lack of sunlight, branches growing on balconies, or threatening windows, pruning is required, as there is a desire for shade on the main road and pruning is not recommended. "If a tree is located on the main road and reaches the balcony of residents, then trim off the branches of the balcony and try to preserve the branches without affecting the residents," said Zhang Chao.

Sample trees in the community. Photo by Wu Yuqing

On April 2, 2023, the voting results of the owners' meeting were announced: 1273 votes agreed to this plan, accounting for 67.68%; 150 votes, accounting for 7.97%, disagreed with this plan, making it one of the issues that was approved with a high number of votes at the owners' meeting.

That month, pruning trees officially resumed.

However, due to the need for the robotic arm to park and work in a closed area on the road, parking spaces suddenly became scarce. "The workers and cranes are in place at 7 o'clock, and sometimes they don't work at 9 o'clock because the cars can't be moved." Wang Lanhua recalled that if the cars can't be moved in time, the progress of 30 trees a day will sharply decrease to 89 trees.

After discussion, the property management is responsible for coordinating parking spaces. "The workers have determined the scope of tree repair, and we will contact the owners one night or the same day in advance to notify them to move the car. Later on, everyone cooperated very well, and even residents who were not at home at the time would give us the car keys."

In the community, everyone's cooperation in repairing trees is gradually increasing.

How to "break boundaries" in updating old residential areas?

When looking at the various trimmed trees in the community, there are many trees that have been trimmed, only one or two branches poked out to preserve them. "This is not a worker's mistake, but what we call deep pruning," Zhang Chao explained.

The promotion of "deep pruning" in this tree repair operation confirms the helplessness and adaptability of this old community in the face of community management system.

In the 2022 Notice, it is also stipulated that "trees in residential areas that are pruned in a retractable manner shall not be pruned on a large scale in a centralized manner. The number of trees to be pruned at a time shall not exceed half of the planned retractable pruning quantity in the residential area and shall not exceed 50. If the number of trees to be pruned exceeds 50, they shall be pruned in batches, and the pruning time interval between different batches shall exceed 6 months." The origin of this notice is due to the phenomenon of "beheading trees" caused by frequent storms when pruning trees in old residential areas in recent years.

The rule of "no more than 50 trees" was originally intended to avoid excessive force when repairing trees, but it has added difficulty to many large residential areas. Jindu Huahao Yueyuan Community has pruned a total of 1098 trees this time, and according to the survey, there are over 400 trees that need to be pruned by retraction. "According to this standard, our community with such a large size has 2360 households. Even if 50 trees are to be repaired in the first and second half of the year, wouldn't it take 4 years for me to repair 400 trees? After that, every year the homeowners' meeting will bring up the need to repair trees, what would the residents think? Every year they are repairing trees, why is the efficiency of your business committee so low?" Zhang Chao said helplessly.

The growth of trees pruned in the community after two to three months. Photo by Wu Yuqing

How to meet the regulations while also meeting the needs of residents?

Zhang Chao sought help from experts and obtained a tailored plan - deep pruning. Deep pruning is essentially a retraction pruning, but leaving more branches on top of the retraction. Zhang Chao explained with a smile, "For example, if I want to cut my hair short, but I keep one, do you think I cut it short or long? Actually, it's a bit of a brush." This is a way to achieve a balance between regulatory requirements and residents' demands. Walking on the main road, one can often see a thick branch of bare trees pointing straight into the sky, revealing a hint of humor amidst difficulties.

Wang Lanhua, who has many years of pruning experience, found that newly built communities in recent years have avoided the problems encountered by old communities during the green plant planning period. "There are no big trees around the new community building, usually flowers and shrubs, and the greening amount can be achieved through the lawn area. The tree species have also been improved, such as the cedar and water fir in the old community that cannot be seen in the new community. Basically, high ornamental tree species such as flowers and shrubs, spring crabapple, and cherry blossoms are planted. The big trees on the road have also been transplanted several times and have already been set high in the nursery."

"Nowadays, documents are becoming more and more standardized, and there are clear numerical provisions in the greening regulations," explained experts from the Zhuanqiao Town Green Committee Office.

Zhang Chao is now familiar with the pruning history of every tree in the community. In a daze, he even forgot that his original intention in joining the property committee was to solve the problem of parking difficulties in the community - this old and outdated community configuration can no longer keep up with the times. Faced with more than 1500 registered cars, the community can only provide more than 800 parking spaces, and more than 400 cars often park in unmarked areas or green belts. In order to facilitate the smooth parking of vehicles parked near the green belt in the community, some corners of the green belt have been slightly retracted. "Strictly speaking, changing the green area of the community is also not allowed. However, this change does not affect the overall green belt pattern of the community, and it can also help us compete for several more parking spaces."

The establishment of garbage bin rooms is also an attempt to challenge boundaries under regulations. "In fact, when we strictly calculate the garbage bin room, it can also be considered as a unauthorized construction in the community." Zhang Chao communicated with the planning party and decided to use color steel plates on it instead of sealing the entire building. "Now it is equivalent to adding new public facilities in the community, which may not meet the requirements at all, but we are willing to take this risk for the improvement of the living environment of residents. After all, our main demand is to solve the problem of nearby garbage stacking."

Just like repairing trees, with the passage of time, some community management regulations that were originally applicable are no longer applicable, and community managers need to cut off some branches that are not suitable for their living environment in order to continue growing. But this kind of change is not easy, sometimes even requiring some compromise wisdom and courage to "break boundaries".

For the Jindu Huahao Yueyuan community, the top priority is to wait until the autumn weather cools down and trim the other half of the trees according to everyone's wishes... The community renovation of those unsatisfactory aspects is still continuing at a pace that it can bear. The people living here are also striving to explore a new balance between "compliance" and "comfort".