Sec. 7-19-2. Tree canopy preservation requirements.

(a)   The tree canopy on a development site shall meet the applicable standards according to the site's Resource Management Overlay District, proposed land use, and the amount of tree canopy preservation, as set forth in Tables 7-19.1, 7-19.2 and 7-19.3 below. (Percentages refer to the relation of tree canopy requirement to gross site area in square feet.)

(b)   Residential subdivisions and multi-lot commercial developments may group trees in clusters throughout the development rather than meeting the canopy requirements on a lot-by-lot basis.

(c)   Trees preserved to satisfy the planting requirements of section 7-11-3 shall be permitted to satisfy the requirements of this section when such trees are existing wholly on the property and not within the public right-of- way.

(d)   All trees used to meet requirements must be healthy, non-hazardous and non-invasive.

(e)   Areas designated as tree canopy protection areas shall remain as such in perpetuity. Tree removal shall be prohibited in these areas unless otherwise permitted.

(f)   Excluded areas: Tree canopy protection areas shall not include any of the following:

(1)   Drainage easements;

(2)   Cross access easements;

(3)   Governmental and utility easements that prohibit trees;

(4)   Any easement authorizing tree disturbing activities;

(5)   Areas devoted to future transportation (including greenways) and/or stormwater infrastructure.

(g)   No structures or improvements are permitted to be installed within designated tree canopy preservation areas.

(h)   Encroachment into the critical root zone area is restricted to 20%, protecting 80% of the critical root zone and 100% of the structural root plate. See 7-11-3 Preservation and protection of existing vegetation requirements.

Table 7-19.1 - Tree Canopy Requirement Classification
Land Use	Resource Management District
	Downtown	Urban	Suburban
Residential Subdivision	Class A	Class C	Class C
Multi-Family & Office	Class A	Class B	Class C
Institutional, Parks & Recreation Uses	Class A	Class B	Class C
Commercial	Class A	Class B	Class C
Industrial	Class A	Class B	Class C

 

Table 7-19.2 and 7-19.3 Canopy Requirement Class

Table 7-19.2 - Class Based Canopy Requirement, Classes A & B*
Canopy Requirement Class	Existing Tree Canopy Preserved	New Tree Canopy Installation Required	Total Tree Canopy Required
Class A	5%	0%	5%
	4%	2%	6%
	3%	4%	7%
	2%	6%	8%
	1%	8%	9%
	0%	10%	10%
Class B	10%	0%	10%
	8%	3%	11%
	6%	6%	12%
	4%	9%	13%
	2%	12%	14%
	0%	15%	15%

*Percentages not shown on this table are rounded down to the nearest whole entry.

Table 7-19.3 - Class Based Canopy Requirement, Class C***
Canopy Requirement Class	Existing Tree Canopy Preservation Requirement	New Tree Canopy Installation Requirement	Total Tree Canopy Requirement
Class C, Sites with 76-100% existing canopy coverage	15%	0%	15%
	12%	6%	18%
	9%	12%	21%
	6%	18%	24%
	3%	24%	27%
	0%	30%	30%
Class C, Sites with 41-75% existing canopy coverage	15%	0%	15%
	12%	5%	17%
	9%	10%	19%
	6%	15%	21%
	3%	20%	23%
	0%	25%	25%
Class C, Sites with 0%-40% existing canopy coverage	15%	0%	15%
	12%	4%	16%
	9%	8%	17%
	6%	12%	18%
	3%	16%	19%
	0%**	20%	20%**

***Percentages not shown on this table are rounded down to the nearest whole entry.

(Ord. No. 4824, § 1h, 9-8-20; Ord. No. 5103, § 1b, 9-24-24)