[Ord. No. 78-07, § 503; Ord. No. 04-09]
The purpose of this Section is to encourage the retention of
living trees on undeveloped property, and to protect public benefits
and the health, safety, comfort and general welfare of the public
by preventing the denuding of vacant lands, maintaining slope stability
and preventing erosion.
[Ord. No. 78-07, § 503.1; Ord. No. 04-09]
This section shall apply only to the Hillside Development (H-D)
District and the Hillside Combining (:H) District, and only to living
trees on unimproved lots therein over five (5) feet in height.
[Ord. No. 04-09]
A.
Permission to remove any tree as herein described in the designated area shall be first requested from the Director of Public Works; if denied, the applicant may appeal the decision to the Planning Commission as provided in subsection 20.48.040.
B.
Application for tree removal shall be made to the Department of Public
Works upon a form to be provided by the City, and shall be accompanied
by such information as may be required to allow appropriate criteria
to be applied to the proposed action. This information may include
site and building plans, drawings and elevations, landscaping plans
and other relevant data. No fee shall be charged for the application.
[Ord. No. 78-07, § 503.3; Ord. No. 04-09]
The decision of the Director of Public Works shall not become
final until ten (10) days after the decision. Within the ten (10)
day period, an appeal from the decision may be taken to the Planning
Commission by the applicant or any other interested party. Appeal
shall be made on a form to be provided by, and shall be submitted
to, the City Clerk. The appeal shall state specifically where it is
claimed there was an error or abuse or indiscretion by the Director
of Public Works, or wherein the decision is not supported by the evidence
in the record. Upon receipt of an appeal, the Planning Commission
shall set a public hearing at its next regular meeting, and the Planning
Commission shall render its decision within seven (7) days after the
public hearing.
[Ord. No. 78-07, § 503.4; Ord. No. 04-09]
In the event that a tree(s) exists that is in immediate danger
of damaging either life or property, the Director of Public Works,
upon proper application, may grant permission for removal of the tree(s)
upon the finding of the existence of an emergency.
[Ord. No. 78-07, § 503.5; Ord. No. 04-09]
In the event that applicant has applied for design review pursuant
to subsection 20-10.2, which includes within such application landscaping
and tree removal, a tree removal permit is not required, but shall
be included in the submission for design review.
