This chapter is known as the "City of Santee Urban Forestry
Ordinance."
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
This chapter sets forth tree-related policies, regulations,
and generally accepted standards for planting, trimming, and removing
trees on public property and public rights-of-way. Additionally, this
chapter sets forth policies relating to trees planted as a condition
of residential, industrial and commercial development. The provisions
of the chapter are enacted to:
A. Ensure
that the City will continue to realize the benefits provided by generally
accepted practices of urban forestry;
B. Clarify
property owners' basic responsibilities to ensure that trees
on public rights-of-way are recognized as part of the community's
urban forest and those trees are not arbitrarily removed or damaged;
C. Identify
the Department of Community Services as the City department responsible
for the care of public trees throughout the City; identify the Director
as the responsible City administrator for authorizing public tree
removal;
D. Maintain
the optimal amounts of practical tree cover on public parks and open
space lands within the City;
E. Maintain
the City's commitment to generally accepted Tree City USA status
and Growth Award status as designated by the National Arbor Day Foundation
and the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection;
F. Maintain
appropriate diversity of tree species and age classes to provide the
community with a stable and sustainable urban forest environment;
G. Assign
the Director to make recommendations regarding tree maintenance and
landscaping decisions, promote generally accepted International Society
of Arboriculture practices and standards within the City;
H. Maintain
the practice of managing trees on public rights-of-way in a manner
that does not damage, obstruct, or interfere with public improvements;
I. Manage
the planting of trees on public rights-of-way on residentially classified
streets;
J. Maintain
the practice of requiring tree removal permits for the removal of
trees on public rights-of-way;
K. Develop
and maintain a street tree master plan, including a list of trees
approved for use in the right-of-way.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
Words and phrases in this chapter have the common and usual
meaning except as defined below or elsewhere in this code.
"Director"
means the Director of Community Services or designated representative.
"Native tree"
means any tree of the following species: Coast Live Oak (Quercus
agrifolia), Canyon Live Oak (Quercus chrysolepis), Englemann Oak (Quercus
engelmannii), and California Sycamore (Platanus racemosa), and any
tree identified as native to southern California.
"Parkway"
means the portion of the public right-of-way located between
the sidewalk and the curb.
"Private trees"
means trees whose trunks are located upon privately owned
property and those trees whose trunks are located upon property owned
by a public entity other than the City.
"Protected tree"
means the coast live oaks on the property defined in the
definition for "native tree."
"Public highway"
means any public street, public way, or public place in the
City either owned by the City or dedicated to the public for purpose
of travel.
"Public trees"
means both trees growing on City-owned property and trees
planted by the City growing on public rights-of-way or landscape maintenance
districts.
"Shrubs"
means a bush or a plant more than 12 inches but not more
than six feet tall.
"Street classification"
means the name attributed with a set of street and road characteristics
listed in the circulation element of the Santee General Plan.
"Street tree"
means a tree which the parks and landscape maintenance supervisor
has designated as appropriate for planting within the public right-of-way
for the particular portion of the public right-of-way in question
and is on the approved street tree list.
"Topping"
means the severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than
three inches in diameter, within the tree's crown, to such a
degree as to remove the tree's natural canopy and/or severely
disfigure the tree's appearance.
"Tree" or "trees"
means any individual or group of self-supporting woody perennial
plant or plants growing with a single or multi-stemmed trunk supporting
a crown of branches.
"Trees growing on public rights-of-way"
means trees whose trunks are located in whole or in part
on property in which the City owns an interest for purposes of vehicular,
pedestrian, equestrian, or City utility use. Trees growing on public
rights-of-way include both public and private trees growing on public
rights-of-way.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The Director has the right to determine whether any specific
woody plant is considered a tree or a shrub. Such determination is
final and not subject to appeal.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The City has control of all trees, shrubs, and other plantings
now or hereafter in any street, park, public right-of-way, landscape
maintenance districts or easement, or other City owned property within
the City limits, and has the right, but not the duty, to plant, care
for, maintain, remove, and replace such trees, shrubs and other plantings.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The Director, by use of City employees or private contractors,
has the right, but not the duty, to plant, maintain and otherwise
care for, or if necessary, remove, any and all trees in public places
in the City. The responsibilities of the parks and landscape maintenance
supervisor include, but are not limited to, the following:
A. Prepare
an annual program for tree planting and tree care in public places
of the City;
B. In coordination
with the Engineering Department, recommend to the City Council changes
or additions to the master street tree plan;
C. Develop
maintenance standards as they relate to street trees and trees in
public places;
D. Inspect
the planting, maintenance and removal of all trees in public places;
E. Make
a determination to remove trees in public places;
F. Review
all landscaping plans as they affect trees in public places.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019; Ord. 612 § 2, 2023)
A. It is
unlawful for any person to:
1. Remove,
trim, prune or cut any public tree or tree growing on public rights-of-way
unless such work conforms to City standards;
2. Interfere,
or cause any other person to interfere, with employees or contractors
of the City who are engaged in planting, maintaining, treating or
removing any tree in public places or removing any material detrimental
to the tree;
3. Willfully
injure, disfigure or intentionally destroy by any means any tree in
public places, except with permits described elsewhere in this chapter;
4. Construct
a concrete, asphalt, brick or gravel sidewalk, or otherwise fill up
the ground area near any tree in public places, to shut off air, light
or water from the roots, except under written authority from the Director;
5. Place
building material, equipment or other harmful substance near any tree
in public places which might cause injury to the tree;
6. Post
any sign on any tree in public places, tree-stake or guard, or fasten
any guy wire, cable or rope to any tree, tree-stake or guard; provided,
however, that tree-stakes or guards may be placed around trees growing
in the public rights-of-way by property owners for the purpose of
protecting or training the trees, with approval of the parks and landscape
maintenance supervisor; or
7. Plant
any tree in public places, except according to policies, regulations
and specifications established pursuant to this chapter or any currently
applicable ordinances or code sections.
B. Any
person deemed responsible for damaging a tree in a public place or
removing a tree without a permit as described in this chapter is liable
for damages to the City in an amount equal to the value of the tree
plus City costs incurred to assess damages, in addition to or as part
of any other enforcement action.
C. The
trimming, pruning or removal of protected trees is subject to the
provisions of this chapter.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
A. Pursuant
to
Streets and Highways Code Section 5610, it is the duty and responsibility
of all property owners to maintain the grounds of sidewalks, parkways,
and maintenance strips on the owner's property, regardless of
whether such property is developed or within the public right-of-way.
Property owners are responsible for watering trees growing in public
rights-of-way. The owner of any property has the primary and exclusive
duty to perform maintenance of any sidewalk, parkway, or maintenance
strip on the owner's property, regardless of whether the City
has notified the owner of the need for such maintenance or has performed
similar maintenance in the past. The property owner shall owe a duty
to members of the public to keep and maintain the sidewalk area in
a safe and nondangerous condition. If, as a result of the failure
of any property owner to maintain the sidewalk area in a nondangerous
condition as required by this section, any person suffers injury or
damage to person or property, the property owner is liable to such
person for the resulting damages or injury. Notwithstanding the foregoing,
if a property owner believes damage to the sidewalk, parkway, or maintenance
strip has been caused by a tree planted by the City, the owner must
notify the Director in writing.
B. It is
the duty and responsibility of every person owning or occupying any
real property within the City of Santee, to keep all trees on that
property trimmed in such a manner that meets City of Santee clearance
standards for any street, alley, and sidewalk. It is also the duty
and responsibility of every person owning or occupying any real property
within the City of Santee to keep all trees and shrubs on that property
trimmed in such a manner that they do not obstruct the view of any
traffic sign or device for vehicle traffic in the direction controlled
by that traffic sign or device.
C. Property
owners having trees or shrubs growing on public rights-of-way must
maintain these trees and shrubs to a reasonable standard of care.
Reasonable care ensures that trees and shrubs growing on public rights-of-way
do not block pedestrian visibility; do not obstruct street clearance
requirements; do not obstruct sidewalk clearance requirements; do
not obstruct traffic signals or signs; do not grow into overhead utility
lines; and do not allow tree root structures to undermine sidewalks,
curbs, gutters, adjacent roadways, and underground utilities such
as water and sewer lines. Street and sidewalk clearance is defined
as a minimum of 13 feet, six inches from the lowest branches to the
street or sidewalk.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
When designing or approving new alignments for sidewalks, curbs
or driveway approaches, the City may take into account alternative
options to preserve desirable trees growing on public rights-of-way.
When trees growing on public rights-of-way must be removed, it is
the responsibility of adjacent property owners to remove, at their
own expense, any private trees directly in the way of new sidewalks,
curbs and driveway approaches, unless the tree had been planted with
City approval.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
A. A public utility must obtain a permit pursuant to Section
8.06.110, issued by the Director to maintain trees growing adjacent to utility fixtures or apparatus. The requirement to obtain a permit includes trees that encroach upon public streets.
B. When
maintaining trees for which a maintenance permit has been obtained,
a public utility must observe good arboricultural practices, as specified
by International Society of Arboriculture western chapter pruning
standards and City of Santee pruning standards.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
No person is permitted to trim, prune, cut, break, deface, destroy,
burn or remove any tree, hedge or shrub from any City-owned public
property or from a public highway within the City unless authorized
in writing to do so by the Director or the City Council.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
A. Any person desiring to trim, prune or remove any tree, hedge or shrub from any public property or public highway must file an application with the Director and obtain a permit issued in accordance with Section
8.06.130.
B. In nonemergency
circumstances which do not pose an immediate threat to the public
health, welfare or safety, any person desiring to trim, prune or remove
a protected coast live oak tree must file an application with the
Director. The Director may consider the following with respect to
the permit application:
1. The
condition of the tree with respect to disease, danger of falling,
proximity to existing or proposed structures and interference with
utility services;
2. The
necessity to remove the tree in order to construct improvements to
the property;
3. The
topography of the land and the effect of the removal of the tree on
erosion, soil retention, and diversion or increased flow of surface
waters;
4. The
long-term value of the species under consideration, particularly lifespan
and growth rate;
5. The
ecological value of the tree such as for food, nesting, habitat, protection
and shade for wildlife or other plant species;
6. The
number, size, species, age distribution and location of existing trees
in the area and the effect the removal would have upon shade, privacy
impact, and scenic beauty;
7. The
number of trees the particular parcel can adequately support according
to good arboricultural practices;
8. The
availability of reasonable and feasible alternatives that would allow
for the continued protection of the tree.
C. A protected
tree must not be removed unless and until the City Council authorizes
such removal.
D. In such
instances when a protected tree poses danger to the public health,
welfare or safety, and requires immediate pruning, trimming or removal
without delay, a verbal authorization to prune, trim or remove the
tree may be given by the Director. Any person removing a protected
tree pursuant to this subsection must replace such tree within 30
days after removal by planting another tree of a type and in such
location specified by the Director. The requirement of replanting
another tree may be waived by the Director for reasons such as spacing,
location and good arboricultural practices for that species of tree.
If removal of a tree pursuant to the authority of this subsection
results in the elimination of the need for protection under this chapter,
whether or not due to the waiver by the Director of the replacement
requirement, the City Council will amend this chapter to remove the
protected status within 60 days thereafter.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
A. The
Director may issue a written permit authorizing the trimming, pruning
or removal of any tree, hedge or shrub within a public highway upon
such terms and conditions as the Director deems appropriate to provide
protection to persons and property or may deny such permit.
B. Any
person removing a live tree pursuant to a permit issued by the Director
must, within 30 days following removal of such live tree, plant another
tree of a type and in a location specified in the permit. The requirement
of replanting another tree may be waived by the Director for reasons
such as spacing, location and good arboricultural practices for that
species of tree.
C. The
Director may issue a written permit authorizing the trimming, pruning
or removal of a protected tree upon such terms and conditions as the
Director deems appropriate to provide protection to persons and property
or may deny such permit.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
If the Director deems that the trimming, pruning or removal
of any tree, hedge or shrub within a public highway is necessary for
the protection of the traveling public or public property, the Director
may, subject to the availability of funds, personnel and equipment,
cause such tree to be trimmed, pruned or removed to provide such protection.
A protected tree must not be removed unless and until the City Council
authorizes such removal. Notwithstanding the foregoing sentence, in
such instances when a protected tree within a public highway poses
danger to the public health, safety, and welfare and requires immediate
removal without delay, and such removal results in the elimination
of the need for protection, the City Council will amend this chapter
to remove the tree from protected status within 60 days thereafter.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
No person is permitted to plant any tree, hedge or shrub upon
or within any City, public highway, or public property within the
City unless authorized in writing to do so by the Director.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
Any person desiring to plant any tree, hedge or shrub within any public highway or public right-of-way must file an application with the Director and receive a permit pursuant to Section
8.06.170.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
No permit for the planting of a tree within any public highway
will be issued by the Director unless the species of the tree to be
planted is one approved by the Director. The permit for the planting
of a tree, shrub or hedge may be issued upon such terms and conditions
as the Director determines appropriate to protect persons and property
or may be denied.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
No person is permitted to injure, deface, or remove any protective
structure placed around any tree or plant growing upon any public
highway or public property in the City or around protected trees on
the County Edgemoor property.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The City is exempt from the provisions of Chapter 12 (commencing
with
Public Resources Code Section 25980), Division 15 of the Public
Resources Code, known as the Solar Shade Control Act.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
When the City requires tree pruning, any tree service contractor
performing work must have on staff an arborist certified by the western
chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture. This arborist
must use reasonable diligence in overseeing pruning trees and must
certify that all work meets the City's pruning specifications.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The City will attempt to provide on-call tree services in emergencies.
Emergencies include fallen trees and other immediate safety hazards.
The parks and landscape maintenance supervisor determines if an emergency
exists. These services will be provided on an "as available"
basis and the City assumes no liability for failing to provide these
emergency services.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The topping of public trees and protected trees is prohibited,
unless the failure to top a tree poses a threat to public safety.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
Nothing contained in this section imposes any liability upon
the City, its officers or employees, or relieves the owner of any
property from the duty to keep any tree, shrub or plant upon any street
tree area on his or her property or under his or her control in such
condition as to prevent it from constituting a hazard or an impediment
to travel or vision upon any street, park, pleasure ground, boulevard,
alley or public place within the City.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
No person, firm or corporation is permitted to interfere with
the Parks and Landscape Maintenance Supervisor or persons acting under
his or her authority while engaged in trimming, planting, mulching,
pruning or removing any tree, shrub or plant in any right-of-way or
public place within the City.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
Any action by the Parks and Landscape Maintenance Supervisor may be appealed, unless otherwise stated, to the Director within 30 working days after the decision of the Parks and Landscape Maintenance Supervisor. The appeal must be in writing and filed with the Community Services Department. Any appeal pursuant to this chapter will be governed by the procedures in Chapter
1.14; provided, however, that the Director's decision is final and nonappealable. The decision by the Parks and Landscape Maintenance Supervisor to remove a tree for safety reasons or in an emergency will be accomplished immediately and is not appealable.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)
The Parks and Landscape Maintenance Supervisor is hereby charged with the responsibility for the enforcement of this chapter in accordance with the provisions of Title
1.
(Ord. 561 § 3, 2019)