Arlington Select Board Unanimously Backs Conditional Approval to Save Hemlock Street Tree

ARLINGTON — June 22, 2026 — Arlington Select Board unanimously saved a London plane tree on Hemlock Street while receiving a feasibility study recommending metered parking districts in Arlington Heights and East Arlington. The board voted 5-0 Monday to grant conditional approval retaining the London plane tree at 54 Hemlock Street — threatened by the Stratton Safe Routes to School project — after Town Engineer Bill Copperthorne reported that a crosswalk relocation 90 feet northerly resolved sightline concerns, the tree's lean angle of 13 to 17 degrees fell well below the 30-degree hazard threshold, and a four-foot ADA-compliant sidewalk can be constructed around the root zone. Town Counsel Michael Cunningham cited Chapter 87 Section 5 in confirming that only the Arlington tree warden, not the contractor or MassDOT, can authorize removal if the tree's health is later found compromised. Separately, Michael Clark of Stantec presented a feasibility study showing peak Saturday evening parking utilization of 84 percent in East Arlington's commercial core — a level Clark called sufficient justification to introduce metered pricing — and projected that a tiered $1-per-hour and 50-cent-per-hour system could generate sustainable revenue after an initial two-year deficit, following Arlington Center's parking benefit district, which produces between $400,000 and $460,000 annually.