With the summer upon us, one of the factors that helps to mitigate the oppressive heat is our trees. Planting trees can reduce heat islands because surface temperature is lower with a good tree canopy. So glad we’re a certified Tree City but is it time to circle the wagons fellow Springers, or Springites, or whatever we call ourselves?

News flash! someone has told others about us!!!! WHOA!!!! That’s right; the vow we all took when we moved here, administered by the real estate agent, or a convenient city official, to never reveal to an outsider (Defined as someone who resides outside the zip code) any information about our little town, lest they all move here, has been breached!

The ploy many of us have been using for years is starting to wear thin. When we tell someone where we live (not actually revealing pertinent facts about the trees, birds, convenient location, great neighborhoods or city services) and they say, “Ohhh, Miami Lakes!” or “Coral Springs” we just say “yes”. End of story! If they mention Miami Springs by name and they say, “Oh, I’ve heard it’s a really nice small town, tell me about it.” There are a few approved answers you could give such as “I think we’re all full right now, but if anything opens up, I’ll give you a call” or “Actually, most of the town decided to move to Ashville, and the County has designated this area as a retirement village for old lobbyists. Do you want your children to be around that?” Or, “People here are grandfathered in”. One of the reasons people are envious, is that we’re famous for all that foliage.

Aside from that issue, there’s something that has been on the ole back burner. It’s an issue that has dominated the talk over our collective backyard fence. Wait a minute, hold on. Where is that darn backyard fence? I could have sworn we built one here just a few years ago to add a little security/privacy to the back yard. Now it’s gone….oh wait, here it is, under the hedge that looks like it has been growing wild for decades. Look; here’s a license plate with 4 numbers on it. Wow that’s been there for a while.  Hey, what’s this?….Oh my gosh, it’s Jimmy Hoffa!!! Just kidding.

Remember when we vowed our hedges would never get higher than the fence and we would always keep them trimmed? Uh oh! We’ve let that cherry hedge sprout like a 12-year-old weaned on Miracle Gro! It seems that that the yardstick toting troupe from the division of hedges and alley-ways has turned some of us into transgressors. We don’t want to run afoul of the codes, but in our busy world, to some, trimming the hedges ranks on a scale of importance somewhat lower than paying attention to the food pyramid.

Yes, I’m sure you’ve heard the skinny on how the height of our hedges will bring ruin upon us all. Just look what it has done to Coconut Grove. I have heard there are some homes behind those hedges! Is it a safety issue? Maybe. We all need to maneuver carefully when backing our cars out of the driveway. It’s when we get on the roads with numbers on them that we turn into The Daredevil Demon Drivers from Hell!!!!

According to Wikipedia, this city is seen as blessedly isolated from the perceived turbulence of the rest of Miami-Dade County. Does this ‘blessed isolation’ mean we can further isolate ourselves by growing hedges in the open space in front of our homes?

No; let’s continue to have that open space, which helps make our open neighborhoods among the best in South Florida and the envy of all.

 

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