Chapter 12.32 — TREES AND PARKWAY LANDSCAPING

For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:

City. The City of Paramount.

Drought tolerant landscaping. Those landscape plantings, including, but not limited to, trees, shrubs, perennials, groundcovers, ornamental grasses and California-native plants that require low water use for maintenance and that are included in the Metropolitan Water District's California Friendly Garden Guide catalogue, available at http://www.bewaterwise.com.

Park trees. Trees in public parks having individual names, or to which the public has free access as a park.

Parkway. That portion of a public right-of-way which is available for landscaping and not for curb, gutter or pavement.

Parkway trees. Trees planted in residential or commercial areas located between the curb and the sidewalk.

Public right-of-way trees. Trees located on major arterial and secondary roadways which are in the public right-of-way which are the responsibility of the City.

Topping, stubbing, or pollarding. The 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. Topping is defined as the severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than three inches in diameter within the tree's crown to such a degree so as to remove the normal canopy and disfigure the tree. (Prior code § 38-154)

• A. There is hereby created and established a City tree representative for the City of Paramount ("City representative") which shall consist of the City's Public Works Director, or designee.

• B. It shall be the responsibility of the City representative to administer and enforce the provisions of this chapter. It shall be the authority and duty of the City representative to plant, trim, prune and care for all trees, shrubs and plants and to remove all objectionable trees, shrubs or plants in and upon any street, alley or public right-of-way in the City.

• (Prior code § 38-155)

• A. Maintenance.

  1. Public-right-of-way and park trees, as defined hereinabove, shall be maintained by the City's Public Works Department or its designated contractor(s) charged with ensuring maintenance of said trees at all times.

  2. The owner of private property in all residential zones of the City whose property includes a parkway tree shall:

  • a. Provide adequate water to any parkway tree planted on his or her parkway.

  • b. Notify the Public Works Department of any suspected tree hazards or maintenance needs of the parkway tree.

  • c. Landscape and properly maintain the landscaping within the parkway adjacent to his or her property.

• B. Planting. Trees that are indigenous to the area, and/or suitable for the local climate as determined by the City representative and/or landscape architect, should be used. Site layout shall take into consideration Paramount's climate by including trees, landscaping and architectural elements to provide shade, as appropriate for the available root and tree canopy space.

• C. Spacing. A variety of design techniques are encouraged to be used to create safe, inviting, and functional pedestrian and cyclist environments in residential developments, including street trees planted to provide shade on pedestrian paths, sidewalks, and walkways.

• D. Pruning. All trees should be pruned, trimmed, and thinned as deemed necessary by the City representative. All tree pruning shall be done in accordance with ANSI A300 Standards and per International Society of Arboriculture recommendations. The City shall have the right to prune any tree located on private property, but which encroaches on the public right-of-way upon written notice to the property owner.

• E. Tree Topping. It is unlawful for any person to top any public-right-of-way tree, park tree, or parkway tree. Trees severely damaged by storms or other causes, or certain trees under utility wires or other obstructions where other pruning practices are impractical may be subject to tree topping at the sole discretion of the City representative.

• (Prior code § 38-156)

• A. No person shall remove, cut, trim, or prune, injure or interfere with any parkway tree, public right-of-way tree, or park tree.

• B. The City representative may cause to be removed, any tree or part thereof which is in an unsafe condition or which by reason of its nature is damaging to sewers, electric power lines, gas lines, water lines, or other public improvements, or is affected with any fungus, disease, insect or other pest.

• (Prior code § 38-157)

In addition, the following regulations shall apply for landscaping of parkways in the R-1 (Single-Family), R-2 (Medium Density), R-M (Multiple-Family), C-3 (General Commercial), C- M (Commercial Manufacturing), M-1 (Light Manufacturing), and M-2 (Heavy Manufacturing) zones:

• A. All parkways shall be landscaped with live turf, drought tolerant plants, compost, mulch, and artificial turf, or any combination thereof.

• B. Live plant materials shall compose a majority more than 65% of the residential parkway, exclusive of permitted driveways. Other than permitted non-living material, all areas shall be covered with live plant materials.

• C. Parkway landscaping shall consist of artificial turf or drought tolerant plants.

• D. Parkways in C-3 (General Commercial), C-M (Commercial Manufacturing) and M-1 (Light Manufacturing), and M-2 (Heavy Manufacturing) zones shall comply with the Model Water Efficient Landscape Ordinance (MWELO) of the State of California and Chapter 17.96 of the Paramount Municipal Code.

• (Prior code § 38-158)