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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10-23-2006 TC MinutesCITY OF SAN LUIS OBISPO TREE COMMITTEE CORPORATION YARD MONDAY, OCTOBER 23, 2006 MEMBERS PRESENT:Jim Lopes, Don Dollar, Ben Parker, and Sara Young STAFF PRESENT:Ron Combs, Todd Beights PUBLIC COMMENTS There were no public comments. 1.APPROVAL OF SEPTEMBER 25, 2006 MINUTES The minutes were approved as submitted. 2.TREE REMOVALS 3121 S. HIGUERA (7 EUCALYPTUS) Mark Anderson, owner’s representative, reported that a phone call received from a mobile home owner who was concerned about branches hanging over the units prompted the removal request and stated owner of the property was requesting having those trees removed due to safety and liability concerns. He noted that a limb had previously fallen and damaged the top of one of the coaches and did not feel the trees were the correct species for the location. He stated that there was a 5-7 year pruning maintenance program in place at the Park and that a bank of large Cal Trans shrubs provided a buffer for the property. He stated the owner was open to replacement planting requirements and noted that those trees had been on site prior to the development of the Park. Mr. Combs stated the large diameter trees were healthy. Mr. Lopes noted letters received from the owners at Chumash Village #93 who stated that while they favored removal, they were concerned about screening issues and wanted as much landscaping to be retained and replacement planting to occur. The owners at #94 favored pruning without tree removals. Mr. Parker agreed that the trees had been heavily pruned and did provide a buffer zone. He felt they were also a visual asset to the area and removing them would have a negative impact. He stated these particular trees did not present a long-term solution and that eventually they should be replaced with a better species. Ms. Young agreed with Mr. Parker and favored the barrier effect. She felt the shrubbery could be pruned into a hedge/fence effect. Mr. Dollar agreed they were skyline trees for the area and felt removal would harm the character of the neighborhood. He favored retaining with pruning. Mr. Lopes noted some of this stand of trees had fallen in the past and felt another species would prove a better choice for the area, e.g. 24” box Podocarpus. Mr. Dollar moved to deny the removal request, as he could not make the necessary findings. Mr. Parker seconded the motion. The motion passed, with Mr. Lopes voting against. 22 CHORRO ST. (MISC. TREES) Lee O’Reilly, property owner, stated that Exxon was required by lease agreement to return the property to its original condition and remove all improvements. He did not feel the existing trees were an asset and felt the new development would provide better landscaping options. He could not discuss the new development plan, but stated the removal of the gas station equipment would be completed by February 2007 and that new development would follow shortly thereafter. Mr. Dollar was concerned that circumstances could delay new development and that if all the trees and landscaping were removed now, the property could remain barren for an extended time. Mr. Parker agreed that any new development would have to have a landscaping plan, but shared Mr. Dollar’s concern about the stripped site in the interim. He suggested retaining existing landscaping and then remove it when new project plan was approved. James Anderson, Exxon representative, discussed the equipment removal process and excavation and stated it was feasible to keep all but one of the trees, should that be a condition. Mr. Dollar suggested the approval for tree/landscaping removal could be conditional upon new development landscaping plans being approved. Mr. Lopes felt the palm (#2), the Monterey pine (#4), and the Chinese elm (#6) were significant trees and should be retained. He felt the irrigation system could be removed, since winter rains were coming. Mr. Lopes moved to approve the removal of all proposed trees and landscaping except for Trees #2, #4, and #6, which should be retained -- protected from excavation -- and, if possible, irrigated until the new use permit is reviewed. Ms. Young seconded the motion. The motion passed, with Mr. Dollar voting against. 3.NEW BUSINESS -- 2007-09 FINANCIAL PLAN GOAL SETTING Mr. Lopes recapped the previous Committee discussion on whether Tree Committee goals could be incorporated into larger City goals, e.g. re infrastructure maintenance, as City street trees and downtown tree program were part of the basic infrastructure plan and process. Discussion highlights included: Bringing the SLO tree maintenance program into parity with comparable cities: Mr. Combs reiterated that root problems, curb/gutter/sidewalk repair, and trimming were all part of infrastructure maintenance and suggested increasing the Street Dept. contract services and in-house service budgets. Mr. Beights noted that in reviewing the Urban Forest Benchmarking 2004 sheet, staff was still in process of inventorying trees and that within the different cities, staff positions and duties varied within the calculations identified. Mr. Dollar noted that properly maintained trees downtown would reduce safety and liability issues. The Committee discussed updating the completing the Urban Forest tree inventory and staff suggested asking Council to provide grant-writing efforts to finalize the process. After more Committee discussion, the goal was outlined as follows: 1.To increase resources for Urban Forest maintenance division to be in parity with comparable cities to provide sustainable Urban Forest and reduce risk and liability within the City. WHY: The number of trees under the City’s jurisdiction has steadily increased over the past 20 years without sufficient increase in staffing and budget. HOW: Increase the tree maintenance budget to provide necessary trimming and tree care resources as provided in other comparable cities. OTHER BUSINESS Mr. Beights distributed a draft of the Downtown Tree Management Plan for Committee review and requested feedback at next month’s meeting. He also distributed draft minutes from the special 10/26 meeting regarding the Master Street Tree List. Mr. Lopes directed staff to incorporate the changes outlined in the minutes to the Master Street Tree and Major Street Tree lists to prepare for submission to council. He noted the Tree Ordinance update effort would begin with the January 2007 meeting. Mr. Combs delivered a brief monthly staff report, noting that there were a lot of downed limbs and work performed on hazardous maintenance work orders. He also reported that the downtown pruning and high-priority hazard removal efforts began with West Coast contract services. The meeting adjourned at 7:15 p.m. to the next regular meeting of Monday, November 26, 2006 at 5 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Lisa Woske, Recording Secretary