(A) Established. There is hereby created and established a Tree Board in and for the city, which Board shall consist of the city’s Planning Commission.
(Prior Code, § 7A.0201)
(B) Board proceedings. The Tree Board shall have the same officers as the Planning Commission and shall keep a permanent record of its proceedings and activity.
(Prior Code, § 7A.0202)
(C) Duties and responsibilities. The City Tree Board shall have the duty and responsibility to do and perform the following functions in the following areas:
(1) To take and record a general inventory of the trees in existence on public property, including boulevards and other trees belonging to the city, including the conditions of said trees (health, pruning needs, disease, death, and the like);
(2) To take and record a general inventory of the trees in existence on private properties in the city for future reference and assistance in carrying out a long range tree plan for the private as well as the public sectors of town;
(3) To formulate and adopt, and continually update, a long range comprehensive city tree program which shall deal with recommended areas of planting, pruning, removal, and regular or periodic maintenance. The program shall prioritize the areas of need in the order the Board deems appropriate, which priorities may from time to time be revised or restructured as the needs arise or change;
(4) The comprehensive plan shall include a list of preferred trees, trees the Board deems inappropriate or unfit, and areas of the city, with emphasis on public grounds, where certain species of trees are deemed appropriate for planting;
(5) In conformity with the long range comprehensive plan, the Board shall present to the City Council, annually, at or about budget time, its recommendation of a short range plan to be implemented by the Board with approval of the City Council of the next calendar year. Such short range plan shall include a recommendation of which trees to plant in which public areas over the next calendar year, which trees in the entire town need removal, pruning, or other care, and the plantings, trimmings, removal, pruning, or other care of trees recommended in the city tree bank. The short range plan shall include a cost estimate for the next year, which plan in whole or in part shall be acted upon by the City Council. Upon approval by the Council, the short range plan shall constitute the city’s tree program for the next calendar year, including the budget as set forth in said plan, or as amended by the Council’s approval;
(6) The Board shall implement the annual plan and shall coordinate the plantings, pruning, and removal to be done, with the Municipal Finance Office and the appropriate department head(s) to ensure completion and compliance of and with the annual plan;
(7) As stated, the short range annual plan shall include trees designated for removal or pruning due to death, disease, damage, or danger to lives or property. In this regard, the Board shall work with the State or District Forester or other appropriate governmental official in determining which trees in the public or private areas need removal, pruning, or other care. The recommended procedure shall be sufficiently stated, such that on adoption of the annual short range plan by the City Council, it shall have the effect of law as to the removal, pruning, or other care of the trees affected. As stated, the Boards shall implement the annual short range plan, including the portion dealing with tree removal, pruning, and care;
(8) The Board shall have the power to alter or amend the annual plan when in its judgment conditions dictate a change or some emergency or unanticipated need has arisen requiring prompt attention;
(9) The Board shall act as an advisory group for the city’s private sector and shall assist in the planting and care of trees in the private areas of town;
(10) The Board may seek the advice and counsel of the City Council at any time, and the City Council shall direct all matters concerning public tree planting, trimming, maintenance, care, and other city tree matters to the Board for its study, recommendation and implementation;
(11) The Board shall adopt written guidelines setting forth recommended planting, pruning, and maintenance procedures including spacing between trees and distances from other structures, for the use and benefit of the private and public sectors of the city;
(12) The Board shall have the power and other authority to work with other governmental bodies or civic organizations in the formulating, revising and carrying out of the long range comprehensive program as well as the short range annual plan; and
(Prior Code, § 7A.0203)
(D) Interference with Tree Board. It shall be unlawful for any person or organization to interfere with, hinder, or impede any lawful activity of the Tree Board, its members, agents, or employees, including but not being limited to its functions of meeting, planning, planting, pruning, removal, or other care of maintenance.
(Prior Code, § 7A.0204)
(E) Appeal. Any person or organization may appeal any decision, ruling, action, order, or notice of or from the Tree Board to the City Council, who may or may not choose to hear the appeal. If the Council chooses to hear the appeal it shall render a final decision on the matter.
(Prior Code, § 7A.0205)