Rancho Palos Verdes Municipal Code Ch. 12.08 Trees and Shrubs

The following words, as used in this chapter, have the significance attached to them in this section, unless the context clearly requires a different meaning:

A. Director of public works or director means the person having control and management of the public works department, or their designated representative.

B. Groundcover means and includes grass, turf or perennial plants that normally grow in a prostrate manner so as to conceal, or with the purpose of concealing, the ground surface, and that do not exceed eight inches in height and that will tolerate light pedestrian traffic.

C. Maintenance or maintain means and includes pruning, topping, spraying, bracing, staking, treating for disease or injury, or other work performed to promote the life, growth, health, or beauty of trees and shrubs, but shall not include the watering or fertilizing of such trees.

D. Official tree means and includes those trees designated and determined, or hereafter determined by the director of public works to be the best suited to plant along the city streets because of their desirable characteristics of growth and beauty and with reference to their crown, root structure, and adaptability to local climate soil and street conditions. The director shall keep a list of official trees on file at their office available to the public during normal working hours.

E. Parkway means that area between the curb or edge of roadway and the adjacent property line.

F. Shrub means and includes woody vegetation or a woody plant having multiple stems and bearing foliage from the ground level up.

G. Tree means and includes any woody plant, normally having one stem or trunk bearing foliage or crown well above the ground level to heights of 16 feet or more upon maturity.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.010; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

A. The director of public works shall regulate and control the planting or removal of any and all trees planted along any city street. The director shall designate the species, kind, number, spacing and method of planting.

B. Provided further, no tree shall be planted in a planting strip which is less than 30 inches in width between the sidewalk and curb, except that upon approval of the director of public works, species of official trees designated by them may be planted in a planting strip less than 30 inches in width, but more than 24 inches in width between the sidewalk and curb.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.020; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

A. The public works department will, except for watering and fertilizing, maintain and remove as spelled out in the city's tree removal, replacement, and maintenance policy, trees planted along city streets. Trees planted along public walks, lanes or on other city property, other than along a city street, will be maintained by the public works department in the same manner as trees planted along city streets.

B. Trees planted along city streets shall be pruned to give a clearance of not less than eight feet over sidewalks and not less than 16 feet over streets as the size of the tree permits.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.030; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

No person shall plant, cut down, mutilate, injure, remove, or in any way impair the natural growth of any tree planted or growing in, on, or along any city street, on other city property, or within any city right-of-way, or cause or permit the same to be done except as provided in this chapter.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.040; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977; Ord. No. 636, § 2, 5-19-2020)

Any person desiring permission to plant, cut down, remove, or in any way impair the natural growth of any tree planted or growing in, on, or along any city street, on other city property, or within any city right-of-way shall first make written application to the director of public works for a permit therefor. The director may require all or any part of such approved work to be performed by a licensed contractor. The removal and replacement of trees shall be based on the city's tree removal, replacement and maintenance policy.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.050; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977; Ord. No. 636, § 2, 5-19-2020)

No person shall place, or cause to be placed, any stone, cement, or other substance about any tree planted along any street, or on other city-owned property, which shall impede the free entrance of water or air to the roots of such tree, without leaving an open space of ground around the trunk of such tree of not less than 18 inches clearance all around.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.060; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

A. No person shall deface, mutilate or attach or place any rope, wire, sign, poster, handbill or other thing to or on any tree growing along any city street or public place, or to cause any wire charged with electricity to come in contact with such tree.

B. Provided further, no person shall allow any brine, oil, liquid dye, salt or other substances injurious or harmful to plant life to lie, leak, flow, drip into or onto or to come into contact with, the tree or the soil about the base of such plant.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.070; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

A. No person shall plant, or cause to be planted, any tree, shrub, plant or groundcover in the area between the sidewalk and curb except as provided in this chapter. Grass, turf, or other groundcover plantings shall be permitted; provided, that such plantings shall not be allowed to attach themselves to or ascend the trunk of any tree. Planting, cutting, mowing, watering, fertilizing and all other maintenance of grass, turf or other ground cover in such parking strips will be performed by the adjacent property owner, subject to the restrictions in this chapter.

B. Upon any violation of this section, the director of public works shall cause notice to be served upon the adjacent property owner requesting them to correct the violation. If, after seven days after notice has been given, and said violation has not been corrected, the director is granted authority to provide for and enforce the removal of such violation by the department of public works. Such costs as are incurred by the department of public works in the removal or correction of such violation shall be billed to the adjacent property owner.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.080; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

In the erection, alteration, construction, repairing of any building or structure, the owner thereof shall place, or cause to be placed, such guards around all nearby trees located along the street, alley, court or other public place as shall effectively prevent injury to them.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.090; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

No person shall prevent, delay or interfere with the director of public works, or any of their assistants, in the execution or enforcement of this chapter; provided, however, that nothing in this chapter shall be construed as an attempt to prohibit a public hearing before the city council if an appeal is filed. Any person aggrieved by any act of determination of the director of public works, or their assistants, in the exercise of the authority granted in this chapter, shall have the right of appeal to the city council whose decisions, after public hearing of said matter, shall be final and conclusive.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.100; Ord. No. 91, § 1(part), 1977)

A. Purpose. This chapter provides a procedure for the trimming and/or removal of trees which are located on city property, a city easement, or within the public right-of-way in order to protect the public health, safety and welfare by preventing the needless impairment of views from vista points and view lots.

B. Procedure.

1. A request to trim or remove a view-impairing city tree shall be directed to the public works department.

2. City staff shall investigate the request to confirm whether the subject view impairing tree is located within the public right-of-way or on city property. Staff will also investigate whether the impairing tree is a city tree.

3. If confirmed to be a city tree, the case shall be forwarded to the planners in the community development department assigned to view restoration to conduct a view analysis of the subject tree. The planners shall assess whether the subject tree significantly impairs the view from the applicant's viewing area and prepares a memo with their findings.

4. The planner who conducts the view analysis shall provide a memo to the public works department which explains the results of the view analysis and makes tree trimming recommendations. Tree trimming, and in some cases tree removal, recommendations shall be made to maintain healthy city trees. However, in cases where tree removal may be the only option to eliminate the significant view impairment, public works will recommend a replacement tree. In the event that a resident disagrees with the recommendation of the view analysis or subsequent action, a resident may submit their appeal within two weeks of notification to the city council in accordance with municipal code section 12.08.100 (Interference).

5. Tree trimming and removal practices shall be carried out in accordance with municipal code chapter 12.08 (Trees and Shrubs). Pursuant to section 12.08.100 (Interference), no person shall prevent, delay or interfere with the director of public works, or any of their assistants, in the execution or enforcement of this chapter 12.08 (Trees and Shrubs). Any resident has the right to appeal any action by the director of public works pertaining to this interim process. The right of appeal shall be submitted to the city council whose decision, after public hearing of said matter, shall be final and conclusive.

(Code 1981, § 12.08.110; Ord. No. 583, § 3, 7-19-2016)