[Adopted 8-12-1996 by Ord. No. 1606 (Ch. 25, Part 1A, of
the 1997 Code of Ordinances); amended 12-19-2022 by Ord. No. 1971]
This article may be referred to as the "Street Landscape Ordinance
of the City of Warren."
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
CITY TREE
A tree in a public park in the City or on City-owned property.
COMMUNITY FORESTER
An arborist/horticulturist of the City of Warren to be appointed
by Council.
PARCEL
Contiguous land under one ownership.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, company, association, corporation
or other group or entity which engages in the cutting, topping, trimming,
pruning or any other activity which cuts into trees or roots of trees
on real property on which the person is neither owner nor acting on
behalf of the owner.
PRIVATE TREE
A tree on private land not within City streets.
RIGHT-OF-WAY TREES
Trees within City streets (an area, all or a portion of which
is within the right-of-way of a street officially platted as a City
street).
TOP OR TOPPING OF A TREE
The cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than three inches
in diameter within the tree's crown to such a degree as to substantially
remove the natural canopy.
TREE
A woody plant with one or more main trunks which generally
reach 20 feet or more in height at maturity.
TREE ZONE
The area of tree planting within City streets.
WITHIN CITY STREETS
Any area within the right-of-way of a street officially accepted
and opened as a City street.
It shall be unlawful for any person to conduct any of the following
activities in the City's right-of-way or within City streets, without
a permit issued by the City pursuant to and in accordance with the
Street Tree Management Plan:
A. To cut down, top, prune, or cause to be cut down, topped or pruned,
any tree within City streets, except trimming of low branches that
interfere with the use of the street or sidewalk.
B. To plant or cause to be planted any tree within City streets.
C. To trim any tree within City streets when the trimming activity is
performed by or on behalf of a utility company on two or more parcels
of land as one work project.
D. To fasten externally ropes, wires, cables, electric attachments,
signs or other devices to a tree within City streets.
E. To cut or disturb roots, to obstruct free access of air and water
to roots, excluding sidewalk replacement, or to undertake demolition
or construction work without protecting or guarding nearby trees,
where such activity is likely to cause substantial injury or destruction
of a tree within City streets, as determined by the Community Forester.
[Adopted 8-12-1996 by Res. No. 2399 (Ch. 25, Part 1B, of
the 1997 Code of Ordinances)]
[Amended 12-8-1997 by Ord. No. 1622]
A. All persons performing activities under this chapter and relating
to the planting, cutting down, pruning or trimming of trees within
City streets and applying chemicals or devices to trees within City
streets and affecting the health of trees within City streets shall
comply with these standards and specifications where applicable.
B. All persons receiving permits shall conduct the work in accordance
with known and accepted arboricultural methods as are generally followed
to protect the vitality of such trees, and they shall act in accordance
with all relevant ordinances and resolutions of the City of Warren.
C. Fees shall be paid to the City for issuance of permits in amounts
as established from time to time by resolution of City Council.
The following specifications pertain to the spray application,
soil application or injection of fertilizers, pesticides or growth
inhibitors to the aboveground portions of trees or roots:
A. General specifications.
(1) Applicators applying chemical pesticides to right-of-way trees shall
adhere to all federal and state laws pertaining to pesticides and
their application.
(2) Application of restricted use material shall be made by a person
with a current pesticide license.
(3) The pesticide applicator shall know and understand the capacities
and safety precautions of those materials used by either himself or
his employees and be aware of those recommendations stipulated by
the manufacturer.
(4) Ineffectual control, damage, injury or death to plants or adverse
effects on animals or persons resulting from the use of materials
beyond the limitations of the manufacturer's guarantee shall be considered
the responsibility of the licensed operator and his employer.
(5) Operators shall properly dispose of excess chemicals, including rinse
water, in accordance with federal and state laws. Washing out or draining
tanks and equipment into public sewers and gutters is prohibited.
(6) No spray application shall be carried out when there is sufficient
wind to make pesticide control ineffectual or create an over-spray
risk to persons, plants or property.
(7) No spraying of pesticides shall be done when air temperature is less
than 40° F.
(8) Adequate precautions shall be taken in all phases of chemical preparation
and application in order to minimize the chances of toxicity or phytotoxicity
to nontarget species.
B. Specific requirements pertaining to tree injection.
(1) Authorization by the Community Forester or a designee must be given
prior to any injection of chemicals into right-of-way trees.
(2) A record of trees injected shall be kept and turned into the Community
Forester upon completion of work. The record shall include date, time
of day, location, operator, chemicals used, size, species of tree,
amount of chemical used and any other pertinent information.
[Amended 6-24-2019 by Ord. No. 1921]
A. Plant material.
(2) The Community Forester or a designee shall be notified and have the
right to inspect any trees before or after they are planted.
(3) A tree list shall be maintained by the City categorizing small, medium
and large appropriate varieties as selected and approved by the Community
Forester in consultation with the Department of Public Works.
B. Planting methods and techniques.
(1) No plant pit shall be dug or approved until all underground electric
or telephone lines, gaslines, waterlines or any other improvement
locations are checked in accordance with Act 172 of 1986 of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
(2) Trees may not be planted in violation of current City standards for
distances from street intersections, fire hydrants, driveways or utility
poles. Actual tree locations shall be approved by the Community Forester
or his designee.
(3) It is prohibited to plant or cause to be planted any tree less than
the following distances from curbs, sidewalks, underground water,
sewer or other utility facility, and overhead utility wire, cable
or similar utility facility, except that, in some cases, the Community
Forester may approve the planting of smaller tree species in treelawns
less than four feet wide.
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Curbs and sidewalks
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Small trees — 2 feet
Medium trees — 3 feet
Large trees — 4 feet
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Underground water, sewer or other utility facility
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Medium trees — 8 feet
Large trees — 10 feet
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Overhead utility cable, cable, wire or similar utility facility
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Medium trees — 10 feet
Large trees — 10 feet
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(4) The spacing of right-of-way trees shall be as follows: small trees,
25 feet; medium trees, 30 feet; large trees, 40 feet; except in special
plantings designed by a landscape architect and approved by the Community
Forester.
The following specifications are intended to prevent unnecessary
damage and destruction to trees:
A. General specifications.
(1) Authorization must be given by the Community Forester or a designee
before any of the following is performed:
(a)
Attach or install any metal materials, signs, cables, wires
or other things foreign to the natural structure of a tree within
City streets.
(b)
Treatment of the soil within the root zone with a soil sterilant.
(2) All site or landscape plans involving public property shall show
all existing trees. Trees proposed to be saved and removed shall be
indicated. Every possible effort shall be made to preserve desirable
trees.
(3) During new construction, existing trees to be saved shall be marked
with prominent identification. Protective devices shall be placed
around all "save" trees as soon as possible. Acceptable protective
devices include, but are not limited to, standard snow fencing attached
to metal posts, wire or string with flagging attached to wooden or
metal post set securely in the ground or board fencing.
(4) Heavy equipment shall not be allowed to travel over the root zone
of existing trees unless landscape fabric and wood chips or boards
in small areas are used to avoid compaction of the soil and damage
to the tree's roots.
(5) Curb cuts shall not be closer than five feet from the trunk of a
tree. No paving or asphalt, other than replacement, shall be installed
closer than two feet from a tree trunk.
(6) New sidewalks, paving or asphalt, other than street cartway, must
allow space for tree roots that is permeable to air and water. The
following should be used as a guideline. For trees up to four inches
in trunk caliper, 25 square feet of porous area is needed. For each
additional two inches of tree caliper, 10 more square feet are needed.
(7) Changes to finished grade elevations within the dripline of a tree
to be saved shall be avoided whenever possible. If proposed final
grade changes from existing grade are absolutely necessary within
the dripline of "save" trees, tree wells or walls shall be used.
(8) If trees are in full leaf during the construction phase, it may be
necessary to supply supplemental irrigation. The Community Forester
shall notify the permittee when irrigation is required.
B. Specific requirements pertaining to protection of trees.
(1) Permits granted for street openings and curb cuts include notice of the requirements of the Street Landscape Ordinance (Article
I of this chapter).
(2) When an underground project encounters the roots of a tree within
City streets, modification of the project under or around the tree
roots may be required as reasonably necessary to protect the health
and survivability of the tree.
(3) When in the process of excavating within the dripline of a tree within
City streets roots larger than two inches are encountered, the Community
Forester or his designee shall be contacted. All roots shall be cleanly
pruned on the tree side of the excavation. Backfilling shall be done
as soon as possible to prevent the drying of exposed roots.
(4) Installation of curbs and sidewalks shall be completed in a manner
as may reasonably protect the health and survivability of trees and
tree roots. Clean cuts shall be made in every case.
(a)
Sidewalks. Roots less than two inches in diameter of trees within
City streets may be cleanly pruned on the tree side of the excavation
without notifying the Community Forester. Notification of the Community
Forester is required to prune roots larger than two inches in diameter.
Sidewalk cutouts are permitted to clear trees or large roots while
maintaining a minimum four- or five-foot-wide sidewalk, as the case
may be.