Hawaiian Gardens Municipal Code Ch. 12.19 Management of City Trees

This chapter establishes responsibility, policies, standards, and regulations necessary to ensure that City trees are maintained in a safe and healthy condition through professionally accepted arboricultural standards. In adopting this chapter, it is the intent of the City to select, situate, and maintain City trees appropriately to maximize benefits and minimize hazards, nuisances, hardscape damage, and maintenance costs, in an effort to promote water infiltration, reduce risks of flood events, minimize the urban heat island effect and reduce greenhouse emissions, increase property values, and ultimately beautify the City for residents and visitors alike.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

The following definitions of words shall apply to this chapter:

City shall mean the City of Hawaiian Gardens.

City tree means any City-owned tree which is located within any public park, City right-of-way, median, parkway, planting easement, or on any other City-owned property.

Community Development Department means the City department responsible for the implementation, oversight, and enforcement the City's Urban Forest Management Plan and all other rules and regulations affecting City trees within the City.

Director means the City's Community Development Director, or designee.

Easement or right-of-way means land owned by another over which the City has an easement or right-of-way for street and related purposes.

Hardscape is collectively, the permanent man-made features of landscape such as pavement, sidewalks, curbs, and walls, typically made of impervious materials, including, but not limited to, concrete, asphalt, stone, tile, brick, pipe, and lumber.

Maintain or maintenance means activities such as, but not limited to, trimming, root-pruning, spraying, watering, fertilizing, mulching, treating for disease or injury, or any other similar act which promotes the safety, growth, health, beauty and life of any City tree.

Municipal Arborist is an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) certified individual hired by the City, responsible for the long-term care and management of City trees.

Parkway refers to that portion of a street right-of-way which is available for landscaping, and not for curb, gutter or pavement.

Person means and includes any individual, partnership of any kind, corporation, limited liability company, association, joint venture, trust or other organization, however formed, as well as trustees, heirs, executors, administrators, or assigns, or any combination of such persons. "Person" also includes any public entity or agency that acts as an owner in the City.

Pruning, trimming, or thinning means and includes any act by which the reduction of the density of a City tree using professionally accepted arboricultural standards occurs.

Responsible person means and includes any person, whether as an owner as defined in this section, or otherwise, who allows, causes, creates, maintains, or permits a violation of this chapter to exist or continue, by any act or the omission of any act or duty. The actions or inactions of a responsible person's agent, employee, representative, service provider or contractor shall be attributable to the responsible person. Such persons shall also constitute responsible persons.

Superintendent means the City's Public Works Superintendent, or designee.

Topping, stubbing, or pollarding means removal of a branch to a stub, bud, or lateral branch not large enough to assume a terminal role which produces less desirable results than more moderate pruning with respect to the natural form of the tree and which is generally hazardous to the overall health and stability of the tree.

Urban Forest Management Plan means a written document developed and implemented by the City which sets forth policies, procedures, standards and other relevant guidelines regarding the selection, planting, maintenance and removal of City trees, and establishes general preservation and planned management objectives to promote and perpetuate a sustainable community forest. This management plan shall include a copy of the City Council approved City Tree Renewal Plan and Master Tree List.

Urban heat island effect is the effect on an urban area to cause it to be significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas due to human activities, typically from the modification of land surfaces.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

The powers and duties of the Superintendent or designee under this chapter are as follows:

A. To have charge of, direct, schedule, and supervise the planting, removal, pruning, watering, and all general maintenance of any City tree in compliance with the Urban Forest Management Plan.

B. To maintain and keep appropriate records of all City trees as deemed necessary.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

The powers and duties of the Director or designee under this chapter are as follows:

A. To establish and revise when necessary, the Urban Forest Management Plan which states policies, procedures, and standards concerning the selection, planting, maintenance and removal of City trees.

B. To review all landscaping, construction, or development plans when the actions proposed therein, may directly or indirectly, affect the health or welfare of City trees.

C. To grant or deny the issuance of all permits for the planting, pruning, or maintenance of City trees.

D. To impose conditions on the issuance of a permit that is granted pursuant to this chapter.

E. To enforce the provisions of this chapter.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

The Community Development Department shall prepare an Urban Forest Management Plan for approval by the City Council. The Community Development Department thereafter shall use its best efforts to ensure that activities of the City are guided by such plan. The plan shall incorporate the following elements:

A. A clear, concise, and comprehensive statement of policies and objectives for urban forestry management in the City.

B. An inventory of every street tree and any other trees deemed necessary by the Community Development Department, which inventory shall include, as appropriate, species, age, condition, maintenance records, and any other information necessary or usable in the long-range planning or day-to-day planting and maintenance of the City's urban forest.

C. The Community Development Department shall produce and maintain a list of the type and species of trees suitable and desirable for planting and the areas and conditions under which such trees shall be planted. This list shall be known as the Master Tree List.

D. A City Tree Renewal Plan, based on an evaluation of species characteristics and performance as recorded in the inventory, providing for rotational reforestation of diseased or declining trees and break-up of potentially problematic monocultures.

E. A set of standards for the Community Development Department and the public for City tree installations, pruning and maintenance, acceptable tree species, and any other standards, criteria, or administrative procedures deemed necessary to carry out the objectives of this chapter and the Urban Forest Management Plan.

F. A process for continual update and improvement of the Urban Forest Management Plan elements.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

Property owners shall be responsible for the care and conservation of adjacent City parkways, including, but not limited to, mowing, edging, irrigation, and weed abatement, excluding those activities prohibited by Section 12.19.070 of this chapter. Property owners are expected to apply for permits for any maintenance of the parkway pertaining to trees as outlined in this section.

A. A person shall obtain a written permit from the Director prior to undertaking, causing, or allowing the following actions to occur:

1. Planting, pruning, root pruning, thinning, trimming, or otherwise performing, causing, or allowing an act of maintenance to occur on a City tree.

2. Applying pesticides to a City tree.

3. Removal of a City tree, at the expense of the applicant.

4. Engaging in any form of alteration, construction, demolition, relocation or repair of a building or structure, or commencing any other form of improvement on City or private real property that may directly or indirectly affect the health or welfare of a City tree. A permit is required pursuant to this chapter notwithstanding the issuance of any City technical code permits, approvals or other permits.

B. Applications for permits must be made to the Community Development Department on forms provided by the Department, and shall include such information as the Director deems necessary to review the application. A fee shall not be charged for a permit issued pursuant to this section.

C. The Director shall issue a permit, upon determining that the public interest is best served by such action, and that the service provider, in performing the proposed action will adhere to the standards defined in the Urban Forest Management Plan. Any permit granted shall contain a date of expiration and the work must be completed in the time allowed on the permit and in the manner in which it is described. A permit shall be null and void if its terms are violated.

D. The Director may impose conditions to any permit in order to protect the health and welfare of City trees. If the permit request is for removal of a tree, the Director may require the planting of another tree within the City from the approved Master Tree List, in lieu of said removal.

E. Work undertaken by the permittee or his or her agents may be stopped immediately and the permit may be revoked by oral or written order of the Director when it is determined that the program of work or conditions violates the terms of the permit.

F. City personnel, contractors, and service providers who remove a City tree pursuant to a written agreement with the City are exempt from the requirements of this section.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

It is prohibited and unlawful for any person to do, cause, or allow the following activities or conditions to occur:

A. Damage, carve, disturb, transplant, prune, root prune, or remove any City tree, or undertake any other action that may directly or indirectly affect the health or welfare of a City tree, except as provided pursuant to Section 12.19.050.

B. Top, stub, or pollard any City tree.

C. Cause or allow any poison or other substance harmful to tree life to lie, leak, pour, flow or drip upon or into the soil within the drip line of any City tree; or set fire or permit any fire to burn when such fire or heat thereof will injure any portion of a City tree; or to operate any device, equipment, object or tool such as a mechanical weeding device, in such a manner as to cause damage to a City tree in any way.

D. Except pursuant to a permit issued by the Director pursuant to Section 12.19.050, improve a City easement or public dedication area, or parkway that is on or abuts private real property with structures or hardscape materials; or to otherwise place, store or maintain any hardscape materials or other personal property in such areas when such actions, structures, materials and items could directly or indirectly damage a City tree because of harm or possible harm to its root system or any portion of the tree; or when such actions, structures, materials and items could compact the soil over roots or otherwise impede free passage of water, air, or fertilizer to the root system of a City tree.

E. Cause or allow irrigation on or in close proximity in such a manner as to cause harm, decline, or death to a City tree.

F. Fail to install, implement, or maintain sufficient guards or protectors, as identified in the Urban Forest Management Plan, during the course of any construction or repair to, or alteration or demolition of a structure, or other improvement on City or private real property so as to prevent injury, harm, or detriment to any City tree. Prior written approval of the Municipal Arborist shall be obtained before such devices are installed or implemented.

G. Undertake actions for which a permit is required, exceed the scope of a permit, violate a condition of a permit, or perform actions after a permit has expired.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

A. Any violation of this chapter shall be a misdemeanor or infraction at the discretion of the City Attorney or District Attorney. Any person violating any provision of this chapter shall be subject to criminal and/or administrative citations or civil actions, pursuant to Chapters 1.12 and 1.13 of the Hawaiian Gardens Municipal Code.

B. Irrespective of and cumulative to any criminal conviction for a violation of this chapter, the City may, pursuant to Government Code Section 36901, impose a civil penalty in an amount not exceeding $1,000.00 on any person who commits a violation of this chapter. The City may recover the penalty either through an administrative hearing or a civil action brought either by the City Attorney or a designated employee of the City.

C. Irrespective of whether the City pursues criminal and/or civil action under this chapter, nothing in this chapter shall prevent the City from seeking restitution for damage to City property as an alternative to criminal action and/or civil action to recover a civil penalty in accordance with subsection B. of this section.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

Should any section, clause or provision of this chapter be declared by the courts to be invalid, the same shall not affect the validity of the chapter as a whole, or parts thereof, other than the part so declared to be invalid.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)

Should any person disagree with a determination made by the Director, they may appeal to the City Manager or designee. All appeals shall be made in writing within 15 days of such determination, and shall state the basis for the appeal in accordance with Chapter 1.14 et seq., of the Hawaiian Gardens Municipal Code.

(Ord. 574 § 1, 2017)