MLK Park Tree RePlanting

You have an opportunity to memorialize a loved one, give the gift of a tree, celebrate a milestone, or honor someone with a tree simply because they cherish nature. For a donation of $500 or more, you will be able to dedicate a specific tree that will be identified on on a single plaque at MLK Park, so park visitors can find the tree easily in the future. Sausalito Beautiful will coordinate with you to select the tree and specify the appropriate dedication text.

If time permits, we will identify the memorial trees prior to planting.  You will be invited to choose the tree based on your donation level and timing (i.e., higher donation levels have priority, as do earlier donations). We will contact you at the appropriate time to select your tree. Note that the design and location of the plaque may not be finalized until fundraising is complete.

Yes, you may dedicate a tree to two people! For example, you may want to honor a husband and wife, two friends, or two relatives.

For more than two people, we may ask that you come up with a single designation in order to keep the dedication to a reasonable length.  For example, “In honor of the Smith family”, or “To the Artemis Reading Club”.  We have not yet set the exact maximum length of a tree dedication, but we will have one based on the constraints of the size of the single plaque placed in the park.

Visitors to MLK Park will be able to look at the single on-site plaque to identify the location of their dedicated tree.  In addition, the Sausalito Beautiful website will have a digital map locating each dedicated tree, and the City of Sausalito will have a record of the MLK Tree dedications. Thus whether you are visiting in person, or just want to check in from afar, you will be able to identify “your” tree.

There will be a single on-site plaque that identifies all the trees that have been dedicated in the park. As you can imagine, managing several dozen plaques around the park would be logistically complex and expensive—so we decided on just a single plaque.

Sausalito Beautiful is launching a single fundraising campaign for the entire MLK tree planting which will take place over at least two years. We hope to conclude raising money in advance of actually planting the trees—in other words, we will be raising money based on our projected expenses, not our actual expenses. Thus our actual expenses may not perfectly line up with projections.

If donations exceed actual expenses, the remaining monies will be utilized to professionally maintain the MLK trees (e.g., arborist visits) and/or  to plant shrubs, perennials, and vines in order to further beautify MLK Park. Be assured that monies raised to beautify MLK Park will be used to improve MLK Park.

MLK Park will have several Ulmus Parvifolia (Chinese Elm trees) which are listed as being semi-deciduous. This botanical term refers to plants that lose their foliage for a very short period, when old leaves fall off and new foliage growth is starting, which often occurs in tropical and sub-tropical woody species. Examples of semi-deciduous trees include Mimosa bimucronata and Itea virginica.

As you probably know, evergreen trees retain their foliage all year long; thus provide a green canopy all year long. Even when leaves begin to die off or become damaged, they will continuously be replaced with new growth that will fill the branches throughout the entire year.

Deciduous trees lose their foliage for part of the year—typically during the Fall . Their leaves will begin to change colors, slowly falling off the branches, leaving them bare during the winter months. These plants will store up chlorophyll, which normally keeps the foliage a rich green color through summer and fall, and begin spring with fresh, new growth.

Plants may be labeled as semi-deciduous if their periods of dormancy are dependent on certain weather conditions—they will shed leaves in cooler months but may retain them in milder/warmer months; they may also be referred to as semi-deciduous if they lose their foliage for only a short period of time before regrowth, or lose their foliage just as new growth emerges.

Several cork oak trees are planned along the hillside north and upslope from the fields. Oaks are gorgeous trees, are native to this area, and fit in well with the Sausalito tree-scape.  Unfortunately, our native oaks would not do well on the flat grassy areas at MLK because these will be irrigated regularly for the athletic fields. Oaks hate receiving summertime water—fungal diseases such as oak root fungus (Armillaria mellea) and crown rot (Phytophthora spp) are often caused by high soil moisture and can kill the tree.

While planting fruit trees may sound like a  noble pursuit, they are not the best choice for urban public landscapes. Fruit and nut trees tend to be very messy, with dropped flowers and fruit, which can become a hazard for athletes. Rotting fruit can attract insect pests, and inspire children to use them as projectiles. In addition, fruit trees often need more careful pruning, spraying and fertilizing.

Unfortunately, conifers such as pines, cypress, cedars and firs are thought to be more fire-prone than most deciduous trees and we wanted the new trees to follow the most up-to-date firesafe standards. Several broadleaf evergreen species (Olive, Melaleuca, Chinese Elm, Cork Oak) will provide some year-round green canopy at MLK, but they are more fire resistant than conifers, whose high resin content ignites quickly and burns intensely. Broadleaf evergreens have tough leathery leaves that will scorch before catching fire. Considered even more fire safe are deciduous trees whose thin, moist leaves  simply shrivel when exposed to extreme heat instead of spreading fire.

For more information on trees in a fire-safe landscape, read this article in Pacific Horticulture. Here is the List of fire-safe and fire-prone trees as specified by Fire-Safe Marin.

We envision a green, leafy park with top-notch athletic fields being used from morning to night by people of all ages and athletic abilities.  Athletes will be drawn to MLK for the high quality fields and parents will enjoy watching their childrens’ sports activities while sitting in the shade.  We envision older folks strolling on the new encircling path while enjoying the leafy greenery and occasional shade.

MLK Park will be a place where neighbors are drawn in order to relax and be refreshed in the beautiful, green surroundings; a place where kids love their summer camp because of the combination of athletic facilities and cool, green respite under the trees, away from the sun. In 20 years, the next generation will thank us for having the foresight to plant such gorgeous trees.

Please look at the current MLK tree plan commissioned by Sausalito Beautiful and developed with Sausalito’s Director of Parks & Recreation.  Imagine how gorgeous our park could be, and the benefits trees would bring. We hope you are as excited as we are!

It’s often very disappointing to see mature trees being taken down!  In order to fix the drainage and enlarge the playing fields at MLK, however, some healthy trees needed to be removed.  For example, fixing the drainage required regrading the entire field but the new soil level would not be appropriate for many existing trees.

In addition, over the years, several trees were not in very good health, perhaps they weren’t the right type of tree in the right place.  Other trees had died years ago and just their stumps remained.

All told, 44 trees and stumps were removed at MLK for the renovation—so now we need to think about replanting them!

The best time to plant trees was 20 years ago, but the second best time is today! Trees provide immediate visual and ecological benefits, and these benefits increase as the trees grow older and bigger—so we need to get started immediately. Many years ago, the citizens of Sausalito had the forethought to plant trees at MLK Park, we also need to think about the enjoyment and welfare of generations to come.

Outside of the typical reasons to plant trees, many benefits arise from trees at the MLK Park site in specific.

• Trees serve as a wind break, enhancing the fairness and enjoyment of the softball, soccer, and lacrosse games at the park. The average mean daily wind speed in Sausalito varies from 7.1 to 9.4 miles per hour, which is significant to an athlete. Trees can mitigate that wind significantly.
• All park-goers need the option to have relief from the sun, whether they are walking on the path, watching a game, or participating in a summer camp
• Traffic sounds from the nearby 101 highway and Bridgeway Boulevard can be quite loud, and trees muffle sound thereby allowing the athletes to communicate better during games.
• Excess storm water historically creates problems at this park, and trees can soak up excess rainwater.
• After regrading, the soils will be more unstable and trees will stabilize these soils especially on the new hillside.
• Athletes deserve clean air and oxygen, as do residents of the neighborhood
• The MLK site represents 50% of the public green space in Sausalito, and one of the few areas where fire concerns do not prevent a dense planting of trees.

Mature shade trees have been a prominent feature of MLK Park and Coloma Street for decades.  All public green spaces need trees, even if athletic fields are a primary function of that green space.  Athletes directly and significantly benefit from trees that serve as a wind break and sound barrier. People watching athletic games enjoy sitting in shade, and athletes of all ages and levels of intensity want protection from the sun.  Several summer camps are headquartered at MLK Park—these camps are much less interesting when kids are forced to be inside because there is no protection from the heat and UV rays. Neighborhood kids use the park to play pickup soccer and frisbee, then want to flop on the ground in the shade to rest.  Trees are definitely needed in this multi-purpose park.

Athletes come in all shapes, sizes, ages, and desired level of activity—but their goals are similar: increased physical health, mental health and camaraderie—all of which are enhanced by trees. For those who cannot sustain high levels of activity but want to use the encircling walking path or the new age-friendly athletic equipment, trees have proven physical and mental benefits.

The majority of the trees in Sausalito Beautiful’s Tree Plan lie outside the walking path encircling the athletic fields, thus are in no danger of interfering with athletic activities.  In fact, our first phase planting will only involve those trees outside the path.  After the athletic fields are marked, the design team along with the Parks & Recreation Director will verify in-situ the rest of the trees inside the path to ensure that no athletic activities are compromised.

Historically, mature shade trees have been a prominent feature of MLK Park.  The site held Sausalito’s grade school and athletic fields, and had trees planted all around the edges and at strategic spots.  Over the years, the site has been used in different ways and now holds two schools, athletic fields, several businesses, basketball courts, and tennis courts. Residents and park users have seen some trees die over the years, yet look to the renovation as an opportunity to plant the right trees in the right places in order to beautify and enhance their neighborhood.

No one would confuse MLK Park with Yosemite Park, but trees are still needed for functional, environmental, health, and aesthetic reasons.

MLK Park is one of the largest non-WUI areas in Sausalito, thus offers the greatest opportunity to plant trees in our city.  While the Marin Fire Marshall is asking residents in WUI areas to keep tree branches at least 10’ apart on flat land (and 30’ apart on a moderate slope), this does not apply to MLK Park because it is not in a WUI. In fact, since residents in WUI areas are being advised to remove trees that are too close, we have an obligation to plant lots of trees in the non-WUI areas where it makes sense.

All the species of trees planned for MLK Park have been approved by the Southern Marin Fire Department, even as being appropriate for WUI areas—thus they meet a stricter standard than required.

The first part of the park renovation is complete: the new tennis courts are open!  The courts required much more work than expected, but the City announced the opening of the tennis courts on June 14 (2019).

At the July Parks & Recreation Commission meeting, Mike Langford explained that the contractor will be hydroseeding the athletic fields in September, after cars are parked there for the Labor Day Art Festival. The athletic fields should be opened a couple months after that.

We are hoping to do Phase I of the Tree RePlanting in October, for those trees and shrubs outside of the walking path.  We could use your help on Saturday, October 12, even if its just for mixing soil and compost together.