(A)
No person, directly or indirectly, shall remove any regulated tree from public or private property within one of the town's established National Register and locally designated historic districts, or within any existing non-residential development (regardless of whether it extends beyond the one-year period established in § 153.253), without first obtaining a tree removal permit.
(B) All persons seeking a permit for removal of a regulated tree shall submit an application in writing to the Zoning Administrator.
(C) Applications for tree removal shall include the following information:
(1) Name and address of the owner of the site; address of development site; name, address, and telephone number of applicant if contractor or agent of the property owner;
(2) Description of regulated tree(s), including species, size and reason for removal; and
(3) If required, a site plan showing existing site conditions and location of tree(s) to be removed.
(D) (1) No tree removal permit shall be issued unless one or more of the following criteria are met:
(a) The regulated tree is dead, severely diseased, injured or in danger of falling close to existing or proposed structures;
(b) The regulated tree is causing disruption to existing utility service or causing drainage or passage problems upon the right-of-way;
(c) The regulated tree is posing an identifiable threat to pedestrian or vehicular safety;
(d) The regulated tree violates state or local safety standards;
(e) Removal of the regulated tree is necessary to enhance or benefit the health or condition of adjacent trees or property; and
(f) The regulated tree restricts the allowable use of the property.
(2) A tree removal permit shall be issued for a qualified application as cited above and shall apply to the specifics of that request.
(E) The Zoning Administrator shall review all properly submitted applications for tree removal permits and shall grant or deny a permit in accordance with the provisions of this subchapter.
(F) No person shall engage in the partial or total harvesting of timber by the practices known respectively as "thinning" or "clearcutting" of any site within the planning jurisdiction of the town without first obtaining a zoning permit from the Zoning Administrator. For the purposes of this chapter, THINNING shall be defined as an intermediate harvest in a forest stand that reduces tree density and competition for the benefit of remaining trees intended to be harvested at a later date. THINNING shall also be defined as the removal of selected trees from a site for the purpose of non-forestry-related site development, excluding tree cutting necessary for maintenance of existing utilities or the control of diseases and pests. CLEARCUTTING shall be defined as any activity that involves the total removal of trees from a tract of land for the purpose of harvesting and regeneration or non-forestry-related site development. Zoning permits for "thinning" and "clearcutting" shall be subjected to the following requirements, supplementing the provisions of § 153.253:
(1) (a) For tracts of land that are greater than one acre, but not more than five acres, in size, the owner/developer shall retain a minimum 25-foot tree/vegetation buffer along all property lines, except those adjoining other lands devoted to recognized timber-harvesting operations (i.e., activities that follow a forestry management plan and exercise established agricultural best management practices (BMPs)) at the time of thinning or clearcutting. The 25-foot buffer shall consist of a combination of regulated trees and understory (underbrush) vegetation. For purposes of this division (F)(1), REGULATED TREES shall be defined as any tree that meets or exceeds the average caliper size calculated for the forest stand under consideration for timber harvesting. (Note: In situations where the number of regulated trees in a given buffer is less than the retention standard found in the chart below, trees that come closest to meeting the dbh standard for the given tract shall be considered "regulated trees" for the purpose of satisfying this requirement.) Average tree size shall be determined by measuring trees at four and one-half feet above ground (commonly referred to as diameter breast height (dbh)). The minimum number of regulated trees retained per linear 100 feet of a 25-foot wide buffer shall be in accordance with the following graduated scale based on the forest stand's average dbh:
Average dbh in Forest Stand (In Inches) | Minimum # of Regulated Trees Retained in Buffer |
12 and over | 5
|
(b)
Retained regulated trees shall be evenly distributed throughout the buffer area. The buffer shall also consist of naturally growing understory (underbrush) vegetation that has the effect of providing additional screening. Such understory (underbrush) vegetation shall remain in an undisturbed state, to the extent practicable to allow for the removal of selected trees in the designated buffer area. Further, timber harvesting in the buffer will be authorized at such time as the understory trees reach the average dbh standards listed on the above scale or following receipt by the permit-issuing authority of a site development plan that meets the requirements of this chapter.
1. The intent of this division (F)(1) is to:
a. Lessen the impact of timber harvesting activities on surrounding properties;
b. Provide for ongoing reforestation of the buffer in a manner that ensures the health of the trees; and
c. Provide an opportunity to incorporate existing vegetation into a future site development scheme.
2. This division (F)(1) shall not apply to a lot on which a single-family residential structure has been or is to be constructed.
(2) (a) For tracts of land that are greater than five acres in size, the owner/developer shall retain a minimum 50-foot tree/vegetation buffer along all property lines that abut a residential use or residential zoning district. A 25-foot tree/vegetation buffer shall be retained along all other property lines, except those adjoining other lands devoted to recognized timber-harvesting operations at the time of thinning or clearcutting. The 50-foot buffer shall consist of a combination of regulated trees and understory (underbrush) vegetation. For purposes of this division (F)(2), REGULATED TREES shall be defined as any tree that meets or exceeds the average caliper size calculated for the forest stand under consideration for timber harvesting. (Note: In situations where the number of regulated trees in a given buffer is less than the retention standard found in the chart below, trees that come closest to meeting the dbh standard for the given tract shall be considered "regulated trees" for the purpose of satisfying this requirement.) Average tree size shall be determined by measuring trees at four and one-half feet above ground (commonly referred to as diameter breast height (dbh)). The minimum number of regulated trees retained per linear 100 feet of a 50-foot wide buffer shall be in accordance with the following graduated scale based on the forest stand's average dbh:
Average DBH in Forest Stand (In Inches) | Minimum # of Regulated Trees Retained in Buffer |
12 and over | 9
|
(b) 1.
Retained regulated trees shall be evenly distributed throughout the buffer area. The buffer shall also consist of naturally growing understory (underbrush) vegetation that has the effect of providing additional screening. Such understory (underbrush) vegetation shall remain in an undisturbed state, to the extent practicable to allow for the removal of selected trees in the designated buffer area. Further timber harvesting in the buffer will be authorized at such time as the understory trees reach the average dbh standards listed on the above scale or following receipt by the permit-issuing authority of a site development plan that meets the requirements of this chapter.
2. The intent of this division (F)(2) is to:
a. Lessen the impact of timber harvesting activities on surrounding properties;
b. Provide for ongoing reforestation of the buffer in a manner that ensures the health of the trees; and
c. Provide an opportunity to incorporate existing vegetation into a future site development scheme.
(3) In lieu of the retention of existing trees and understory (underbrush) vegetation in the case of clearcutting activities as outlined under divisions (F)(1) and (F)(2) above, the owner/developer shall have the option of removing all said trees and understory vegetation from the site and installing a newly planted buffer. The owner/developer shall install a type "A", opaque screen, as defined in § 153.233, along all property lines that abut a residential use or residential zoning district. A type "C", broken screen, as defined in § 153.233, shall be installed along all other property lines where a buffer is required under divisions (F)(1) and (F)(2) above. Said screen shall be installed within three months of the completion of clearcutting activities in the designated buffer zone area. Said plant buffer shall be planted within ten feet of the property line, unless site conditions dictate otherwise in which case the buffer shall be installed at the closest possible point to the property line. In the case of ongoing timber harvesting operations where replanting is to occur, seedlings planted for the purpose of harvest shall not be planted within the 25-foot and 50-foot buffer zones.
(4) (a) In the event a tract of land proposed for clearcutting is located adjacent to a developed tract of land that already has a buffer in place that meets the standards for screening set forth in § 153.233, the Zoning Administrator may waive all or part of the buffering requirement along the property line abutting said development if he or she finds that:
1. The adjoining property buffer is established to such a degree that it completely excludes all visual contact between uses and creates a strong impression of spatial separation; and
2. Adequate legal mechanisms are in place to ensure the preservation of the buffer for the life of the development.
(b) If, however, an owner of timberland which abuts a developed tract of land decides to develop his or her property after clearcutting the same, but before new growth forms a suitable buffer between the two tracts of land, the forest owner/developer must provide an acceptable opaque screen, as prescribed by § 153.233, along the line of his or her property adjoining the developed tract of land.
(5) If no site plan for development or forestry management/tree replanting plan is submitted in conjunction with the application of a zoning permit for total harvesting of a site, the owner/developer of said property shall replant a minimum of 23 trees per acre, each with a minimum caliper of two inches, at the time the site is developed. This requirement shall run with the land until the property is initially developed, regardless of any change in ownership. The intent of this replanting requirement is to discourage the wholesale removal of trees from the site in an effort solely to market or make the property available for development without providing an opportunity to incorporate existing vegetation in the development scheme. This division (F)(5) shall not apply to recognized timber-harvesting operations where more intensive tree replanting is to occur.
(6) The owner/developer shall be responsible for leaving the site in a clean condition with all major limbs, stumps and excess debris removed. (Note: Stump and limb removal will not be required if retention of such timber debris is a necessary part of the forest regeneration process in accordance with an established forestry management plan or BMP.) The intent of this provision is to discourage the retention of timbering debris on-site which could pose a fire hazard in developed areas.
(Ord. passed 4-9-2013; Ord. 2021-03, passed 6-8-2021)