On Friday April 25, the residents of Cobble Hill Apartments celebrated Arbor Day by preparing personal placards and hanging their messages on trees that are at risk of being cut down at 90 Washington Street. Attached is a collection of pictures of those who attended. They are most thankful for the city officials who attended as well.

They have discovered the following sustainability website that measures the percentage of tree canopy in local communities. Its findings cannot be ignored: https://insights.sustainability.google/places/ChIJZeH1eyl344kRA3v52Jl3kHo?ty=2023&hl=en-US.

This website reports that the City of Somerville has an average tree canopy cover of 19%. By comparison, Cambridge has 30% and Boston has 27%. Perhaps worst of all, Cobble Hill’s census tract records only 7%.

Further impairing what is already a bad outcome for the neighborhood, the Somerville Redevelopment Authority (SRA) wants to develop all four acres at 90 Washington Street. If this happens, the one acre that includes green space and 38 trees will be lost for future generations of Somerville residents.

It is their hope the SRA will honor the recommendations of the 90 Washington Street Civic Advisory Committee and do all it can to preserve the green space for the residents of Cobble Hill, East Somerville and for future generations.