(A) Whenever the City Forestry Chairperson shall determine that a tree in any street, park, or public place has been impaired, damaged, broken, severed, destroyed, or removed in a manner which will cause immediate or future removal of the tree which is deemed premature and untimely based on the condition, vigor, location, kind, and age of the tree, and the City Forestry Chairperson shall have knowledge of the person causing the damage, then the City Forestry Chairperson shall assess against the responsible person the value of the tree as determined by use of the Michigan Forestry and Parks Association Shade Tree Evaluation Chart.
(B) This shall not construe that the value received by the city shall be less than the cost of the removal of the damaged tree and replacement of a comparable tree as determined by the City Forestry Chairperson of not less than three-inch trunk diameter measured at a height of six inches above the ground, nor shall the City Forestry Chairperson be restricted in his or her choice of the replacement planting site.
(C) It shall be the duty of the Police Department having knowledge of such damage or persons causing damage to immediately report same to the City Forestry Chairperson for investigation.
(D) It shall be the duty of the City Forestry Chairperson to notify the City Manager and City Attorney of any of the tree damage which shall dictate value recovery to the city.
(E) The full amount of the value recovered for the damaged tree shall be conveyed to the City Forestry Chairperson for future tree planting purposes notwithstanding the deduction of the removal cost of the damaged tree and replacement of the tree.
(F) The City Forestry Chairperson shall determine the time of the removal of the damaged tree, but it shall not be required that all the damaged trees must be immediately removed if found to be in safe condition in order for value recovery to take place.
(1990 Code, § 89.006) (Ord. 69, passed 11-9-1988) Penalty, see § 10.99