Loading...
Exh 8FAGENDA ITEM #Sr JULY 11, 2005 AGENDA ITEM: SUBMITTED BY: DATE: BACKGROUND: BUDGET: ATTACHMENTS: REVIEWED BY CITY MANAGER: CITY OF ATLANTIC BEACH CITY COMMISSION MEETING Proposed Changes to Chap. 23 Vegetation Don Ford, CBO~~ July 5, 2005 The Tree Conservation Board has reviewed and recommends the following changes to the Tree Ordinance. The Proposed Tree Ordinance is attached with new language underlined and language to be deleted in strikeout along with a summary of the changes. None See Attached Summary AGIrNDA ITIrM #Sr JULY 11, 2005 SU1VI~l~IARY OF PROPOSED CIIANGES TO CHAPTER 23 VEGETATION The following is a list of proposed changes to Chapter 23 Vegetation, City of Atlantic Beach Code of Ordinances, as submitted from the Tree Conservation Board. The changes are listed by page numbers. Pg. 1351 (5) Adds "enhancement of right of ways with canopy;" (6) Deletes "and vegetation when possible" adds "where all reasonable efforts have .been undertaken in the architectural layout and design of the proposed development to preserve existing trees and vegetation." ,~ (8) Adds "Encourage zeriscaping and use of native species;" Pg. 1352 (10) Adds "Establish a tree fund for the collection of moneys from mitigation to be used for planting trees, education, public awareness, administrative cost to preserve the . character of the city, and monies for a part time certified arborists on retainer by the city. available weekends and evenings for the citizens." Pg. 1352 DBH- Deletes "five tenths" adds "a half...(54inches) Pg. 1353 (1) Deletes "in the interior zone" adds "any tree on private property" Removes all references to interior zones and exterior zones and the DBH's required in those zones. Pg. 1354 (2) Removes a. and b. and references to DBH's in interior and exterior zones. Adds to definition of trees. Trees ...adds "and 3 inches diameter of DBH. This definition shall include multiple single trees on the same lot, which combine for an aggregate DBH of 9 inches and which occur within a 20-foot diameter (i.e. grouping). Pg. 1356 a. Deletes section a. Changes 1. to a. and replaces eight thousand with four thousand. Changes wording to include all districts. b. Deletes section b. Changes 2. to b. and replaces ten thousand with eight thousand. Changes wording to include commercial districts. Pg 1357 (2) Deletes "The city and its franchise agents are exempt from obtaining a permit to remove, trim, prune, cut, or disturb roots of any tree within a public easement or I A,GI;NDA ITI/NI #8P' JULY 11, 2005 _-_ _.. cont'd from page I M ROW." Adds - In approving any Tree removal Application, the Tree Conservation Board will consider whether the applicant has made all reasonable efforts to preserve existing trees in the architectural layout and design of the proposed development. g. Replaces one year with eighteen months. Pg. 1359 c. Replaces one dollar with two dollars. d. Adds - After an issue of a notice of corrections is issued by the city inspector a reinspect fee of $50.00 shall be paid. (5) Deletes the word "and punished accordingly" This document was created by the staff. ~ 7/05/05 II AGENDA ITEIVI #SF JULY 11, 2005 Chapter 23 'VEGETATION* Art. Art. Art Art. Secs. ~ I. In General , §§ 23-1-23-14 II. Tree Protection, §§ 23-15--23-35 DI. Accumulation of Weeds, §§ 23-36-23-45 IV. Historic Tree Preservation, §§ 23-46-23-50 ARTICLE I. IN GENERAL .3-1 23-14. Reserved. ARTICLE II. TREE PROTECTION Secs. 23-15. Intent. It is the intent of these regulations to promote the health, safety and welfare of the current and fixture residents of the city by establishing standards for the protection of trees and tree canopy throughout the city in order to: (1) Improve the aesthetic appearance of commercial governmental, industrial, and residential areas through the protection of tress and tree canopy during development; (2) Improve environmental quality by recognizing the numerous beneficial effects of tress upon the environment; (3) Provide direct and important physical and psychological benefits to human beings through the preservation of trees to reduce noise and glare, and to break up the monotony and soften the harsher aspects of urban development; (4) Promote innovative approaches to the design, of site plans and building designs, installation and maintenance of trees, thereby encouraging water and energy conservation; (5) Increase and maintain the value of lands by requiring a minimum amount of trees to be incorporated into development; enhancement of R.O.W.'s with canopy; `V f 1 1 V.Ttl d ~~ , Undertake all reasonable efforts to preserve existing trees and vegetation in the architecural layout and design of the proposed structures. Furthermore to support homeowners efforts ,where reasonable, concerningpossiblevgriance requests. (7) Promote the conservation of potable and nonpotable water by encouraging the preservation of existing plant communities, encouraging the planting of natural or uncultivated areas, .encouraging the use of site-specific plant materials; (8) Encourage xeriscapin~ and use of native species; (9) Establish procedures and standards for the administration and enforcement of this part; *Cross reference -Streets, sidewalks and other public places, CH. 19. Editor's note -Ordinance No. 95-95-64, § 1, adopted February 12, 1996, amended Art. II to . read as herein set out. Prior to such amendment, Art. II. consisted of §§ 23-16-23-27, which pertained to tree protection and derived from Ord. No. 95-84-44, § 1, adopted January 8, 1990. Supp. No 17 1351 AGENDA ITEM #3r JULY 11, 2005 §23-15 ATLANTIC BEACH CODE ' (101 Establish a tree fund for the collection ofmonevs from mitigation to be used for _plantin4trees, education. Qublic awareness. administrative cost to preserve the character of the city, and monies for apart-time certified arborist on retainer by the city available weekends and evenings for the citizens. (Ord. No. 95-95-64, § 1, 2-12-96) Editor's Note---Ordinance No. 95-95-64, § 1, adopted February 12, 1996, amended Art. II. by including provisions designated as § 23-1. For purposes of classifications and in order to preserve .. numerical consistency, such provisions have been included herein as § 23-15 at the discretion of the editor. Scc. 23-16. Definitions. The following words and phrases, when used herein, shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to ' ' them: BufJ"er yard or strip means a strip of land, identified on a site plan or by zoning ordinance requirement, established to protect one type of land use from another land use that may be incompatible. The area is landscaped, maintained and kept in open space. Caliper means the trunk diameter of existing or planted trees. Caliper shall be measured six (6) ' inches above the ground for trees up to and including four (4) inches in caliper, and measured twelve (12) inches above the ground for trees exceeding four (4} inches in caliper. Construction means and includes erecting structures and buildings, placements of utilities, paving, topographical changes, and installation of drainage. DBH means the diameter breast height measured in inches at four and €i~e-texfi~s ~4:~} a half feet ' ' S4 inches above ground level. DBH for multi-trunked trees shall be determined by measuring each trunk immediately above the fork and adding the total inches together. Designee means as appointed representative. Developer/builder/contractor means any person, fum or other legal entity that purchases, agrees to purchase or otherwise holds an interest in real property with the intent to, or in fact does, develop such property for any construction (by himself or others) thereon for which an application for a building permit will ultimately be required. Development, redevelopment, renovating means any construction for which an application for a building permit must be made prior to initiation of any improvement. Also, in the case of vehicular use .. paving, and preparation or pavement (concrete or asphalt) of a site intended for any type of vehicular use. Director means. city's representative responsible for administering building and site clearing permits. Dominant species means the specie occurring most frequently. Dripline means an imaginary line extending perpendicularly down form the outermost branches of a tree. Excavation means the act of digging, cutting or scooping soil or in any way changing the existing grade of the land. Supp. No 17 1352 1GIJNDA ITI;iYI #8I+ JULY 11, 2005 VEGETATION §23-16 Ha: ardour where the tree, due to natural circumstances, is in danger of falling, is too close to existing structures, creates unsafe vision clearance or constitutes a health hazard. Mitigation means trees required to be planted on property to replace a percentage of the trees removed during construction, as defined in section 23-17(c) , or, alternately, funds deposited in the tree replacement fund or existing trees onsite to be used to compensate for .See section 23-1b for specific guidelines. Municipal means of or belonging to the city. Open space means the area not covered by building construction or paving. ' Park means all public use areas owned by the city. Positional conflict means, by virtue of its location, the tree's dripline is encroached upon by site alterations. Preserve area means vegetative areas required to be set aside under the jurisdiction of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection, St. Johns River Water Management District and/or the United States Army Corps of Engineers or other red latory agencies and or other municipalities. Property owner means the person owning the property as shown in the county tax roles. ' ' Protected tree means and includes all of the following: {I) Private protected tree in-t~4~-~st~~~iz; is anv tree on private propertv~~r'afeete~ b ~~ b ~ Public protected tree: Any tree located on lands owned by the city, or other governmental agencies or authorities, or any land upon which easements are imposed for the benefit of the city, or other governmental agencies or authorities, or upon which other ownership control maybe exerted by the city, or other governmental agencies or authorities, including rights-of--way, parks, public areas and easements for drainage, sewer, water and other public utilities. Supp, No 17 1353 AGENDA ITEM #3F JULY 11, 2005 § 23-16 ATLANTIC BEACH CODE o d ' - b f }} ~.~ p p~q~ (3) Exceptional specimen tree: Any tree which is determined by the city commission to be of unique and intrinsic value to the general public because of its size, age, historic association, or ecological • value or any tree designated a Florida State Champion, United States Champion or World Champion by the American Forestry Association. The city clerk shall keep a record of all specimen trees so designated and their location. Protective barrier means a manmade barricade to prevent disturbance of the tree's growing environment. Public place means all grounds owned by the city. Ra:.ing means to scrape, cut or otherwise remove existing trees. Site alterations means any manmade change, disturbance or damage to the existing topography or trees. Street means the entire width of public right-of--way. Tree means any self-supporting woody plant of a species which normally grows to an overall height of a minimum of twelve (12) feet in this area-and 3 inches diameter of DBH. This definition shall include multiple single trees on the same lot which combine for an a~~reeate DBH of 9 inches and which occur within a 20 foot diameter (i.e. a ~roupin~ Tree removal means any act causing the death and/or elimination of a tree. Tree replacement account means an account created by the city to be used exclusively for finding public tree-planting projects, including up to ten (10) percent of the cost for general landscape material. Donations to this account shall be on a voluntary basis and may include monies donated per this section [i.e., definition of "mitigation"]. Understory means assemblages of natural low-level woody, herbaceous, and ground cover species which exist in the area below the canopy of the trees. Unique or special characteristic means a tree of unusual species, configuration, size, age or historical background, including, but not limited to, a live oak, cypress or magnolia tree of thirty (30) inches or • more in DBH. Supp. Na 17 1354 AGENDA ITEM #3I' JULY 11, ?005 VEGETATION §23-17 Sec. 23-17. Applicability; removal of trees; minimum standards; permits; mitigation; development; enforcement; violations and penalties. (A) Applicability. The provisions of this section shall apply to all protected trees within the city, unless specifically exempted herein. (B) Removal of protected trees prohibited; exceptions. (1) No person, organization, society, association or corporation, or any agent or representative thereof, directly or indirectly, shall cut down, remove, damage or destroy, or shall authorize the ' cutting down, removal, damage, or destruction of, any protected tree, as defined in section 23-16 hereof, or shall commit any act or authorize the commission of any act which physically removes a protected tree or causes a tree to die, such as damage inflicted upon the root system by heavy machinery, chemicals or paving, changing the natural grade above the root system and tree damage permitting infection or pest infestation, without first having obtained a permit as herein provided. (2) The following protected trees are exempted from the provisions of this section: a. Any tree located on any property upon which either asingle-family dwelling or a mobile home on an individual lot is located unless a permit for development, ' ' redevelopment, or renovation, , is required, or anticipated within six (6) months following tree removal; b. Any tree located in botanical gardens or in state-approved or government nurseries and groves which are grown for sale or public purpose; c. Any tree that poses imminent danger to the public health, welfare or safety, and requires immediate removal without delay. In such instances, verbal authorization to remove a protected tree may be given by the director. . During the period of an emergency such as a hurricane, flood or any other natural disaster, the requirements of this section may be temporarily waived by the director, so that private or. public work to restore order in the city will in no way be hampered. (C) Minimum tree standards. (1) Minimum tree standards shall apply to all lots affected by permitted development, redevelopment, or renovation Supp. No 17 1355 ~1GIrNDA ITLM #3r JULY 11, 2005 _. __ §23-17 ATLANTIC BEACH CODE (2) Unless otherwise provided in this section, a minimum number of trees shall be planted or preserved upon each site pursuant to the following standards, which are the minimum requirements for landscaping within the city. Trees shall not be placed where they interfere with site drainage or where they will require frequent pruning in order to avoid interference with overhead power lines. • b a "7 f f b rf:~I~riFeffieaE- ' b i b b b ' ~: a. E3xe-(q-} Ten I O tree shall be planted and/or preserved for everyerg~ four thousand f $;889 4 000 square feet of parcel area or portion thereof, ' b in all eea~er~iel districts, except as otherwise provided herein. ?: b. (3ne-~ Twelve (12) tree shall be planted and/or preserved for every tea eight thousand X1.9;898) (eight) square feet of parcel area or portion thereof, b in any industrial commercial district or public (government) use district. WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?? (D) Permitprocedures and criteria for tree removal, relocation and replacement ofpratected trees. (1) Permits for site clearing and the removal or relocation of a protected tree shall be obtained by fling an application. Approval of the application by the tree conservation board and issuance of a permit by the director shall be required prior to any land clearing or grubbing, prior to any disturbance of the root system or site development, or prior to the occurrence of any changes to an existing developed site. The site shall be inspected to insure compliance with the approved site plan prior to any additional permits being issued. Applications for site clearing and tree removal or relocation shall include the following: a. A site plan, at a scale which clearly illustrates the requirements of this section, including the following: 1. The lot configuration; 2. The location and identification of existing and proposed improvements, if any, including structures, water retention areas, paving, grade changes, utilities, easements, and street rights-of--way or approved private streets; 3. The location and identity, by botanical or common name and DBH, of protected trees to be removed, relocated, or retained; 4. The location of preserve areas; '1GENDA ITEM #Sr JULY 11, 2005 Supp. No 17 1356 r VEGETATION §23-17 5. The location of ingress/egress corridors and staging areas; 6. The location of all temporary protective barriers; 7. The location of all trees to be used for mitigation credit. b. A statement explaining why the protected tree is proposed to be removed or relocated. - (2) An application for a permit for the clearing, removal or relocation of a protected tree shall be - reviewed as designated-in subsection (b)(1) above and a decision shall be made thereon within fifteen (15) working days after. receipt of such application or by agreement by both parties to a time . ~ frame. Any person, organization, society, association, corporation or agent thereof who intends to trim, prune, cut, disturb roots, or to destroy or remove any tree from a public easement, public property orright-of--way shall obtain a permit from the director. All work shall be conducted in strict accordance with the National Arborist Association Pruning Standards for Shade Trees, the American National Standards for Tree Care Operations (ANSI #Z133.1), and any additional conditions of such permit. a ' In apRroving any Tree Removal Application, the Tree Conservation Board will consider whether the - applicant has made all reasonable efforts to preserve existing trees in the architectural layout and design of theproposed development. (E) Mitigation .criteria and procedures. (1) Any relocation of trees in compliance with this section shall be performed in accordance with accepted industry practices, including watering to insure survival of transplanted stock. Transplanted trees must be guaranteed for at least e~~ eighteen (18 months. - (2) Protected trees identified for removal on the site clearing or tree removal permit application shall be replaced with new planted trees, unprotected trees or transplanted trees. Protected oaks removed shall be replaced only with oaks. The total caliper inches of replacement trees shall equal one-half (1/2) the total caliper inches of protected trees removed, unless otherwise approved by the tree conservation board. If multi-trunked trees are used as replacement trees, then the total caliper of the four (4) largest trunks shall equal the replacement caliper. New palms may .be used only to replace protected palms removed. No replacement will be required for protected trees which are determined by the city to be dead or deteriorated as a result of age, insects, disease, storm, fire, lightening or other acts of nature. - a. New replacement trees shall be a minimum of Florida Number One defined in the most current edition of the Grades and Standards for Nursery Plants, Parts I and II, published by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Trees shall be a species having an average nature crown spread of no less than thirty (30) feet in Northeast Florida. Trees shall have a minimum two-inch caliper and a minimum often - (10) feet in overall height. b. Existing trees, three-inch caliper or greater, which are not protected trees or transplanted, may be utilized to satisfy tree replacement requirements, subject to the --- ~-• conditions stated in this subsection. AGENDA ITEM #3F JULY 11, 2005 ' §Z3-17 Supp. No 17 1357 ATLANTIC BEACH CODE c. New, preserved nonprotected, or transplanted oaks used as replacement for removed protected oaks shall befour--inch caliper or greater. d. Existing protected trees which would otherwise be removed from the site because of development may be utilized to satisfy tree replacement requirements if transplanted to a. location on the site which meets the requirements. of this subsection. e. If protected tree removal is associated with new development, the name, size and location of all replacement trees shall be shown on the required landscape plan and such trees shall be installed prior to the final buildvng inspection and issuance of the CO. .Otherwise, the name, size and location of the required replacement trees shall be shown on the site plan required for site clearingzor tree removal and such trees shall be installed within the time limit stated on the site clearing or tree removal permit. f. Existing nonprotected trees, transplanted trees and new trees used for replacement become protected trees. g. Replacement trees shall be maintained by watering and guaranteeing the tree for eae- (~}-yeaf eighteen (18}months. Failure to maintain the trees shall be deemed a violation of the zoning code. h. A tree used for replacement shall be at least ten (10) feet from any other tree planted, transplanted or preserved. i. If the applicant demonstrates to the satisfaction of the director that the site cannot . accommodate the total number of required replacement trees as a result of insufficient planting area, the applicant shall provide a monetary contribution to the tree replacement account. The amount of such contribution shall be determined as follows: For every two (2) caliper inches, or fraction thereof, of replacement trees which would otherwise be required, the contribution shall be equal to the retail value of a planted two-inch caliper nursery-grown shade tree. The retail value shall be calculated by taking the average of the median current wholesale price, published by North Florida nurseries, for a container grown, and a balled and burlapped two-inch caliper laurel oak, multiplied by two (2). The retail value shall be recalculated and adjusted annually on October 1. (3) Tree replacement fund monies maybe expended by the city for funding public tree planting projects. Eligible tree planting projects may include projects on private property but only on properties where the city commission has determined that there is a substantial deficiency in tree canopy. Disbursement of tree replacement funds for private property projects may not collectively exceed two thousand dollars ($2,000.00) annually. Up to ten (10) percent of each approved project budget may be used for associated soil preparation materials and mulch. (F) Tree protection during development. All protected trees, preserved understory vegetation, and trees retained for tree credit, pursuant to subsection (e), shall be protected from injury during any land clearing or construction in the following manner: