Five Points Shopping Village

[Dog Walker]

American Elms and Winged Elms make a nice low canopy and don't have disruptive roots.  They have the reputation of doing well in urban environments.  Bradford Pears are a common alternative to Crepe Myrtles.

[Non-RedNeck Westsider]

The issues that I see are nothing more than a plain short-sightedness from whomever is suggesting the trees we get.  When I was building homes for a living, we were required to replant a certain amount of trees credits to make up for what was removed during land clearing.  that's why on most newly developed lots you see a sickly oak tree in the middle of the yard.  I'm sure there's more of the same at play when it comes to commercial development.

There are quite a few hardwood trees that are relatively quick growing that are suited for our area.  Crepes and palms are readily available and you're accustomed to seeing them.  Personally, I would love to see dogwoods and river birch, but would be OK with Yellow Poplar, Black Walnut and Honeylocust.  Pretty much anything that's not an oak tree or a crepe myrtle.

[mtraininjax]

Bradford Pears are NOT the answer, neighbor across the street has 2 huge ones, always complaining about the strong odor and the branches sheering off in the wind, as they are quite delicate. The BP is prone to splitting during high winds. For high traffic areas, simple, easy is best.

[Josh]

Fortunately (or unfortunately) ornamental pears seldom bloom this far south, so the smell isn't too much of an issue. But yeah, they grow too large for such a weak tree and have been coming out of favor for years now. At least they aren't invasive here.

[TomHurst]

IMO....I agree with the statement about Elm trees.  Depending on the scale necessary for a particular project and whether it's in a parking lot of a sidewalk, there are different types of elms that could be selected to suit those particulars.  The only issue is they do lose their leaves in the winter and therefore don't provide shade.
Palms only work for shade if they're clustered tightly together.  Even then, only date palms really provide any significant shade that they are big $$.
Live Oaks get too big for urban sidewalks (look at the ones in front of the Farah & Farah Bldg on Adams for an example).  They tear up the sidewalk and disfigure themselves if they're too cramped or if they're too shaded because they grow outward looking for sunlight.  However, oaks can be great parking lot trees if the planting beds are large enough.
Pear trees are a nice size and shape but they are somewhat delicate.  I've never encountered an issue with the smell but that's interesting to hear.

[Josh]

Pear trees are a nice size and shape but they are somewhat delicate.  I've never encountered an issue with the smell but that's interesting to hear.

It's only the blossoms that smell, and they smell like rotten meat. It doesn't get cold enough here for them to bloom as intensely or as regularly as they do in just the next hardiness zone north, but this past winter was the most I had seen them bloom here in recent memory.

[John P]

Red bud and dog wood

[Dog Walker]

Red bud and dog wood

Both are getting wiped out by disease around here.  Darn few Dogwoods left.

Riverbirch does well as a street tree, but also loses it leaves in the winter.  They look good even when bare because of the silver, peeling bark.

[BoldBoyOfTheSouth]

A few weeks back we've had a lot of rain and a good chuck on the parking lot cose to Post Street was filled with water.  There was some standing water for days.   The parking lot really should be fixed so the water drains.  Imagine what the area will be like when we get serious rains during a hurricane?