[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the City of College Park 10-10-1989 by Ord. No. 89-O-5; amended in its entirety 5-10-2022 by Ord. No. 21-O-09. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The proper planting of trees, shrubs and ground covers.
Trees, shrubs, ground covers and other materials presently
or hereafter planted within the City limits.
All necessary operations, including but not limited to pruning,
mowing, spraying, watering, fertilizing, staking and tree health assessments.
All land exclusive of public ways and public areas.
All public ways, parks and other lands owned or leased by
the City.
All public streets, roads, boulevards, alleys and sidewalks.
Trees located on residential property in the following current
zoning categories: RR, RSF-95, RSF-65, RSF-A, RMF-12, RMF-20 and RMF-48,
as amended.
See definitions below.
Public trees in public rights-of-way or on property owned by
the City.
Residential trees with trunks that measure greater than 36 inches
in circumference (twelve-inch diameter), measured at 4 1/2 feet above
ground level. If a tree divides into branches at less than 4 1/2 feet
height, the trunk shall be measured immediately beneath the dividing
point.
Residential trees measuring greater than 80 inches in circumference
(twenty-six-inch diameter) are considered heritage trees. A heritage
tree is a large individual tree with unique value, which is considered
irreplaceable.
A.
It is the policy of the City of College Park, Maryland,
to educate and encourage all persons in the City to use safe and desirable
installation, removal and maintenance practices to promote healthy
trees, shrubs and ground covers on private and public lands within
the City limits.
B.
The provisions of this chapter apply to trees, shrubs
and ground covers presently or hereafter planted and established within
the City limits.
C.
The organizational provisions of this chapter create
positions and a Board whose purposes are to:
(1)
Enhance the beauty of the City.
(2)
Advise the City staff on planting, removal and maintenance
of trees, shrubs and ground covers in or upon public ways or public
areas within the City limits.
(3)
Protect trees, shrubs, ground covers and other materials
located on public property from undesirable or unsafe installation,
removal and maintenance practices to ensure that no liability occurs
from said practices.
(4)
Identify and guard against landscape conditions (e.g.,
trees weakened by diseases, construction, storm damage, etc.) that
may result in injury to persons using the public ways and areas and/or
damage to public property.
(5)
Coordinate with state agencies to monitor and guard
City landscape against the spread of diseases or pests.
(6)
Educate and encourage College Park residents to adopt
practices that promote and protect healthy trees, shrubs and ground
covers on private land.
D.
When it is in the public interest, the City reserves
the right to protect trees on private lands from diseases, pests or
destruction.
The City Council of College Park shall appoint
a City Forester who will serve for a period of not less than two years.
The City Manager shall employ or contract for
the services of a professional horticulturist.
A.
Board membership and operation.
(1)
By this chapter, the Tree and Landscape Board of the
City of College Park, hereafter referred to as the "Board," is established.
(2)
The Board shall have the following voting members:
five residents of the City appointed by the Mayor and Council of the
City of College Park, the Chairperson of the Committee for a Better
Environment or designee, the City Forester, and a City staff liaison.
(4)
Members of the Board shall receive reimbursement for
reasonable expenses in accordance with City procedures. Further, a
reasonable sum of money shall be allocated for clerical support for
the Board.
(5)
The Board shall choose its own officers, adopt its
own rules of procedure, subject to approval of the Mayor and Council,
and keep an official record of its meetings and proceedings. A majority
of its members shall constitute a quorum for the purpose of transacting
business.
B.
Duties and responsibilities of the Board.
(1)
The Board shall:
(a)
Study the landscape within the City of College
Park and review City landscape plans.
(b)
Review plans for the selection, installation
and maintenance of landscape plantings and removal of questionable
trees, shrubs and ground covers on public ways or public areas within
the City limits.
(c)
Present plans, including the vegetation management
plan, to the Mayor and Council, which, when accepted and approved
by the Mayor and Council, shall constitute the landscape plan for
the City.
(d)
Oversee the administration of the City landscape
plan.
(2)
With the advice of the City Forester, the Board shall
establish, maintain and disseminate an official list of trees, shrubs
and ground covers suited for urban planting in the region's climatic
zone. No trees, shrubs or ground covers other than those on the official
list may be planted upon public ways or public areas within the City
without the approval of the Board.
(4)
The Board shall sponsor educational activities to:
(a)
Increase public appreciation of grand champion
trees of aesthetic, historical or ecological value on public and private
lands within the City limits.
(b)
Encourage civic associations to develop lists
of trees on public or private land in their neighborhoods that may
be protected from destruction.
(c)
Encourage residents to include in their landscape
plans the varieties of trees, shrubs and ground covers on the official
City list.
(d)
Inform residents of safe and desirable installation,
removal and maintenance practices to promote healthy trees, shrubs
and ground covers and provide habitats for wildlife.
(5)
The Board shall develop guidelines to protect from
destruction grand champion trees or trees of aesthetic, historical
or ecological value to the community, whether they are located on
public or private lands within the City limits.
(6)
The Board has the authority to propose, present and
recommend to the Mayor and City Council any resolution, ordinance
or Charter change that advances the purposes set forth in this chapter.
(7)
Provide an annual report and work plan, on or before the date and
in the format determined by the Mayor and Council.
(8)
To
hear appeals from decisions concerning the removal or pruning of urban
forest trees by the Public Works Director.
A.
The Public Works Director shall be responsible for
the installation, maintenance and removal of trees, shrubs and ground
covers within the specifications and standards established by the
City Forester and the Tree and Landscape Board in accordance with
the landscape plan.
B.
The cost of installation, maintenance and removal of trees, shrubs and ground covers and any other costs that shall be used to implement § 179-1, Definitions, as set forth in this document, shall be included in the Public Works Department budget under the tree maintenance account. Further, all expenses and costs incurred to conduct the educational missions, programs and publications of the Board shall be included and made a part of the Public Works Department budget under the tree maintenance account.
Wherever possible, this chapter shall be read
to be consistent with the provision of the Natural Resources Article
of the Annotated Code of Maryland. Any provision of this chapter which
in any manner conflicts with any provision of state law shall be declared
invalid and void to the extent of such conflict.
Nothing herein shall be construed as conferring
upon the City of College Park or the Board created herein the right
to take private property.
Except when required to do so in an emergency, or when exempted
by the Public Works Director because of imminent danger to the public
health, safety and general welfare, no person shall remove or destroy
any tree in the City's urban forest, undertake construction or
other action that could significantly detract from the health or growth
of such a tree, or prune more than 20% of live wood from such a tree,
without first applying for and obtaining a permit from the City.
A.
An approved permit must be conspicuously posted on the property until
the tree is removed or pruned.
B.
Tree permits are valid for one year from the date issued.
C.
(Reserved)
D.
Trees identified for removal in applications submitted for urban
forest trees will be inspected and receive a Level II tree risk assessment
conducted by the Public Works Director, or designee.
E.
A tree removal permit will be issued if the tree is:
(1)
Determined to be dead, diseased, hazardous to the safety of persons
or property in a way that cannot be addressed by using the current
tree care, ANSI Z standards (American National Standard Institute);
(2)
Deemed an invasive species (as identified on the list maintained
by the Maryland Invasive Species Council); or
(3)
An urban tree objectively determined to adversely impact the property
because of its location, condition, or effect on other structures
or trees.
F.
A permit for removal will be issued if the tree is located in a place
proximal to houses or utilities, so that it can cause structural damage,
or in a place that would make it difficult for a property owner to
expand the footprint of the house in conjunction with a building permit
that can otherwise be approved by the County and City. A permit for
removal of a heritage tree in a healthy, nonhazardous condition cannot
be issued unless its location would actually prevent expansion of
the footprint of the house.
G.
In a determination of whether to issue a permit for tree removal
or live wood pruning of more than 20% of urban forest trees, the Public
Works Director or designee will also consider:
(1)
The overall health of the tree;
(2)
The potential hazards associated with the tree;
(3)
The desirability of preserving the tree by reason of its age, size,
or outstanding quality, such as uniqueness, rarity or status as a
landmark or species variety;
(4)
The extent to which the area would be subject to environmental degradation
due to removal of the tree or trees;
(5)
The extent of the tree canopy in the immediate area; and
(6)
Other applicable law.
A.
The owner of the property from which an urban forest tree is removed
on or after July 1, 2022, is required to plant a replacement tree
or to pay a fee to the Urban Tree Protection Fund for each removal,
as follows:
(1)
For removal of a thirty-six-to-forty-seven-inch circumference tree:
Replace with one tree or pay a $250 fee;
(2)
For removal of a forty-eight-inch circumference or greater tree:
Replace with two trees or pay a $500 fee.
Property owners that can demonstrate financial hardship may
request a waiver of the payment to the Urban Tree Protection Fund.
B.
When practicable, replacement trees should be planted on the same
property from which a tree has been removed.
C.
Replacement tree species shall be approved by the Public Works Director
or designee prior to planting and planted within 12 months from the
date tree removal is complete. Property owners are eligible to receive
reimbursement funding for required replacement trees from the City's
Tree Canopy Enhancement Program (TCEP) Fund as identified in the TCEP
guidelines. Replacement trees shall meet the TCEP tree size guidelines,
whether or not reimbursement from the program is requested.
D.
In the alternative, when a tree removal has been properly permitted
as required herein, the owner of the property may request reimbursement
of up to $300 from the City for the cost of purchasing and planting
on the property a species and size of tree that meets TCEP guidelines
and is approved by the Director of Public Works or designee.
E.
Requests for reimbursement will be processed six months after planting
if the replacement tree is in a healthy condition as determined by
the Director of Public Works or designee.
If, at the conclusion of the basic Level II assessment, an applicant
who disputes the findings by the Public Works Director or designee,
can request a second opinion from a third-party assessor, qualified
as an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified arborist
or a tree risk assessment qualified arborist, and licensed and insured
to perform tree assessments in the State of Maryland, to determine
the condition of the tree. The selected arborist will perform an advanced
Level III assessment and provide a written report of the findings
with recommendations. The results of the Level III assessment shall
be provided by the applicant to the Public Works Director to review
for reconsideration of the tree removal application. The City shall
reimburse the applicant for one-half of the cost of the certified
arborist's Level III assessment.
The decision of the Public Works Director may be appealed by
the applicant, in writing, to the College Park Tree and Landscape
Board, by delivery to the City Clerk within 15 business days of the
date of permit denial. The appeal will be considered at the board
meeting following the filing of the appeal. The board will evaluate
all the information presented by the applicant, including any mitigation
proposed by the applicant, and will make a final decision within 30
days of the meeting. The decision of the Tree and Landscape Board
may be appealed by the applicant to the Mayor and Council in writing
by delivery to the City Clerk within 15 days of issuance.
Any person, including an owner or occupant of the property on which an urban or heritage tree is located, and any business or individual performing work for such owner or occupant, who violates any of the provisions of this article shall be guilty of a municipal infraction, subject to the penalty provided in Chapter 110, Fees and Penalties, of this Code. Fines resulting from violations of this article are dedicated to the Urban Tree Canopy Protection Fund.
