trail, but hikers value the solace the forest provides. <br />"The forest offers trails, hiking in the middle of the city, hiking through the <br />woods," says Sandra Austin, a founding member of Friends of Hendricks <br />Park. <br />Austin was asked by PUD opponents to have the board write a letter opposing <br />Dreyer's project. She said she would take the idea to the board, but Friends <br />wasn't ready to take a side. <br />"We aren't opposed to taking a stand, but we are waiting," says Jim Beyer, <br />another longtime member of Friends. Beyer says the continued expanding of <br />the development doesn't sit well with Friends, and the potential visual impact <br />is even more concerning. <br />"The ribbon trail that goes from Hendricks Park to 3oth Avenue is a sweet <br />little trail. And for the most part, you have no idea that there's anyone <br />around," he says. "If you had a whole hillside up there, that would take some <br />of the sweetness of that particular thing away." <br />If the proposed PUD is approved, the park is at risk of more than just being <br />an eyesore. <br />When trees grow in stands they protect one another from windthrow. As <br />stands are thinned, large trees left behind - such as those in the buffer zone <br />- are more susceptible to being toppled, as their roots haven't developed the <br />strength to stand on their own in high winds. <br />"Harvesting the designated trees will significantly increase the risk of wind <br />damage to the remaining trees," Mehrwein said in the letter from Brown to <br />the city. "Trees not only on the CHPUD site, but also in adjacent private <br />properties and in Hendricks Park would be vulnerable to being blown down <br />or having tops broken." <br />Trees on private land contained in the PUD are vital to the stability of the <br />