(A) The city hereby adopts the most current ANSI A300 Standards as guidelines for the care, maintenance, pruning, and planting of trees. The city shall have the right to plant, prune, maintain and remove trees, plants and shrubs within the lines of all streets, alleys, avenues, lanes, public grounds, as may be necessary to ensure public safety or to preserve or enhance the symmetry and beautv of such public grounds.
(B) The Public Works Superintendent and/or City Arborist shall be responsible for the implementation of this chapter. The Public Works Director, upon the advice of the City Arborist, has the responsibility to analyze and determine where trees should be added, pruned or removed and may remove or cause or order to be removed, any tree, or part thereof, which:
(1) Is in an unsafe condition or which, by reason of its nature, is injurious to public sewers, electric power lines, gas lines, water lines or other public improvements or is affected with any injurious fungus, insect, or other pest. This section does not prohibit the planting of street trees by adjacent property owners providing that the selection and location of said trees is in accordance with this chapter.
(2) Crippled, deformed, and physically damaged trees shall be removed and replaced, if the City Arborist or the city's third party contractor opines that recovery and normal development cannot be expected;
(3) Infected with an incurable disease that will result in either:
(a) Deformation;
(b) Death; or
(c) Infection of other trees; or
(4) Determined to present a potential for endangering life or property because of its condition or location.
(5) The tree is diseased, dead or dying;
(6) The tree is damaged or injured to the extent that it is likely to die or become diseased, or such that it constitutes a hazard;
(7) Removal of the tree is consistent with good forestry practices, that is, consideration is given to the species of the tree, location, conditions, age, safety, historic and aesthetic value of the tree to be removed; or
(8) Reasonable efforts have been undertaken in the architectural layout and design of a private improvement or development to minimize tree removal.
(9) Any tree authorized for removal by the Public Works Superintendent that is not on the Prohibited Trees List and is in good condition, as determined by the City Arborist, shall be replaced by a tree identified on the Preferred Species List. The applicant shall incur all costs to remove and replace the tree. All replacement trees shall be located appropriately as confirmed by the City Arborist and as approved by the Public Works Superintendent. If the property where a removal has taken place does not have adequate space to plant a replacement tree, then the applicant shall be required to pay the city a dollar amount equal to the cost of purchasing and planting a new tree at an alternative location on city property.
(C) It shall be unlawful for any person, contractor, or firm to perform any of the following acts without first obtaining from the Building Department, after approval by the Public Works Superintendent, a permit, for which no fee shall be charged and nothing in this section shall be construed to exempt any person from the requirements of obtaining any additional permits as are required by law:
(1) Plant on city owned property or treat, prune, remove or otherwise disturb any tree, shrub or other plant located on city owned property, except that this provision shall not be construed to prohibit owners of property adjacent to city owned property from watering or fertilizing, without a permit, any tree, shrub or other plant located on such city owned property;
(2) Trim, prune or remove any tree or portions thereof. Specifically, a permit shall be required to be obtained from the city prior to removal of any tree whether located on public or private property;
(3) Place on city owned property, either above or below ground level, a permanent container for trees, shrubs or other plants;
(4) Damage, cut, tap, carve or transplant any tree, shrub or other plant;
(5) Attach any rope, wire, nail, sign, poster or any other human-made object to any tree, shrub or other plant located on city owned property;
(6) Dig a tunnel or trench on city-owned property;
(7) Place, maintain or allow to be placed upon a parkway or median any asphalt, cement, stone, lumber or other substance. In determining whether to grant such a permit, the Public Works Superintendent shall consider the nature of the substance, the quality of the substance, the length of time during which the substance will remain on the parkway or median its effect on trees, shrubs and other plant material on the parkway or median, the purpose of placing or maintaining the substance on the parkway or median and the alternatives that may be available to the applicant; and
(D) Any permitted removal of a tree must be consistent with good forestry practices, that is, with consideration to the species of the tree, location, conditions, age, safety, and the historic and aesthetic value of the tree to be removed. The city may, at the discretion of the Public Works Superintendent, incentive the retention of historic and/or legacy trees on private property.
(Prior Code, § 98.006) (Ord. 94-301, passed 8-9-1994; Ord. 2017-005, passed 2-27-2017; Ord. 2023-039, passed 9-26-2023) Penalty, see § 98.064