Cupertino officials continue talks on updating city's protected tree ordinance

The city of Cupertino's quest to protect certain mature trees will continue well into 2014.

The Cupertino City Council held a two-hour study session on April 15 regarding plans to update the city's protected tree ordinance. City staff will now work on a draft ordinance amendment, which could then be presented to the planning commission and then to the council later this year.

Since 2012, the city and the five-member council have been working routinely on tinkering with how the city and residents interact with public and protected trees. The city is aiming to amend the protected tree ordinance, which could include streamlining the process for removing protected trees, updating the list of specimen trees, the tree replacement process, and mitigation for tree removals.

There has been a renewed interest in Cupertino's trees over the past two years. In March 2013, the council amended the city's tree ordinance to clarify references to public street trees and to modify penalties from a misdemeanor to infraction for cutting a public tree. The council also directed city staff to review the specimen tree list and to include only native trees and remove non-native trees from the list. In December, the planning commission gave its initial thoughts on a protected tree ordinance update.

On April 15, the council directed staff to explore not requiring mitigation fees or replacement plantings for removing trees up to a certain size. The council also wanted more information about mitigation costs for certain types of trees and about certain trees' water consumption.

Penalties for illegal tree removal require the payment of a retroactive fee of $3,128 per tree, which contributes to the city's tree planting fund. The city's consulting arborists have indicated the penalty is based on the tree's age, aesthetics, size, cost and environmental quality, according to a city staff report.

The specimen tree list currently includes California Buckeye, Bigleaf Maple, Deodar Cedar, Blue Atlas Cedar, and Western Sycamore. The Bay Laurel or California Bay is being considered for removal due to issues regarding structural integrity, decline, safety and likelihood of hosting sudden oak death, according to a city staff report. The Douglas Fir is up for consideration as an addition to the list.

The ordinance defines mature specimen trees as having a minimum single-trunk diameter of 10 inches or minimum multi-trunk diameter of 20 inches measured 4 feet from natural grade. Staff is recommending decreasing the diameter requirement to 12 inches, according to a city staff report.

For information about the tree ordinance, visit cupertino.org/treeord.

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Cupertino officials continue talks on updating city's protected tree ordinance