Below is a photo of the intersection of East Platte and Logan avenues, looking south. Lee Nicholos, aka Mr. Magnolia, planted the trees leading up to the stop sign in both directions. The city says those trees are too close to the corner and planted too close together.

Nicholos lives on the northwest corner of Platte and Logan, west of Union Boulevard, as seen on the map below from the El Paso County Assessor’s Office web site.

A photo of the house taken from the assessor’s site shows it before Nicholos planted nearly 60 trees and shrubs around it, effectively hiding the house.

Here is a copy of the letter Nicholos received notifying him of his improper planting on the public right-of-way. Note the “Tree City USA” logo in the upper right-hand corner.

Permits for planting trees in parkways are available from the Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services Department at 1401 Recreation Way, north of Uintah Street, just east of Interstate 25. Call the Forestry office at 385-5942 for more information. Or visit www.springsgov.com where you’ll find a cool history of trees in Colorado Springs, a tree planting guide and a “tree matrix brochure.”

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