This little woodland is a pocket of native, ecological intelligence and memory, the legacy of what was there before. If the land was cut in the early 1900’s then it was done by hand, without artificial replanting. That makes it really valuable. It’s as close as we get to the original in most places. It is a small legacy forest. I wonder how much the market value of those big trees figures into the equation. And how ironic that rather than maintaining the trees, they cut them down to build a building to maintain our machines.
— Rob Lewis, The Climate According to Life
In March, 2026, my community discovered that a large area of a county park will be destroyed for a maintenance building. No one saw the SEPA notice, and so we all missed the public comment period and any ability to say “No” to this project.
Several large trees will be destroyed to make way for the building, along with all the underbrush habitat.
This art project included drawings, paintings, and bark rubbings of the trees, as well as wrapping the legacy trees with “Crime Scene” tape and attaching name tags for each of the trees.
Meet just a few of the trees who will be cut down for a maintenance building:
Si’am (Dear one)
Douglas Fir
62.5″ diameter
320 years old
Xpáy̓c (kh-pah-ee-ch)
Western Red Cedar
33.5″ diameter
170 years old
Solomon
Western Hemlock
21.5″ diameter
90 years old
Jimi
Grand Fir
15″ diameter
75 years old
Efraim & Menashe
Western Red Cedars
17″ diameter each
85 years old
Sophia
Western Red Cedar
22.5″ diameter
115 years old
Agatha
Douglas Fir
33.5″ diameter
170 years old
Kurt
Douglas Fir
12″ diameter
60 years old
Constance
Douglas Fir
33.5″ diameter each
170 years old
Sage
Western Red Cedar
35″ diameter
175 years old
Lori & George
Western Red Cedar
21.5″ diameter, together
110 years old
Amy
Western Hemlock
23″ diameter
115 years old
Theo
Western Red Cedar
31.25″ diameter
160 years old
Silas
Douglas Fir
35.25″ diameter
175 years old
Art works of the Odlin trees and habitat
Silas and Si’am
Xpáy̓c
To be lost
Morning light
Bark rubbing from Si’am
Bark rubbing from Lori and George
Bark rubbing from Jimi
Bark rubbing from Agatha
Bark rubbing from Xpáy̓c
Bark rubbing from Amy
Public lands were intended to be a safeguard against the very industrialization that many now seek to normalize and promote. In stark contrast to how most private lands are managed, public lands offer us a rare opportunity to advocate for the landscapes and species we want to see flourish. In many parts of the country, they are the only places left where one can still experience wild nature. But hope requires clarity: We must confront the reality that the status quo has failed us.
— Adam Bronstein, The Wildlife News
