Wine In The Mostly Trees

One of our personal favorite events, the Wine in the Woods, is coming up May 17 and 18 and we always look forward to just relaxing in the festive atmosphere under a canopy of thick trees. In fact, some of our best memories come from simple picnics in the woods, whether it be a church event or just a quiet walk.

So we had to wonder about a story in this week's Flier (we can't find a link on the paper's revamped site), headlined "Plan would preserve most of the trees."

The plan, of course, is General Growth's proposal to renovate Merriweather and surround it with a museum, theater, library, "pathways, fountains, manicured trees, lawns and art."

Sounds real natural like.

Officials at General Growth Properties Inc., the predominate property owner in downtown Columbia believe they can retain 62 percent of the forest in a section of the wooded area that is known as Symphony Woods,said Keith Bowers, an environmental consultant working for the company.

Four in 10 trees would have to go to erect buildings along a new promenade. Only two-thirds of those that remain are regarded as healthy, the story says. So out of 100 trees, that would mean about 40 healthy trees would remain, if we did our math right.