SR 06:139 - Laserfiche WebLink

Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council: BACKGROUND Currently, the majority of tree maintenance work performed on City maintained sidewalk and street medians is provided by a private contractor under the direction of the Parks Maintenance Division. This work primarily involves eliminating tree hazards and limb clearance, although some removals are necessary depending upon the health of the tree. In May 1999, the question of City responsibility for tree maintenance in sidewalk medians (the strip of land located between the street and sidewalk) was raised by a resident in the Birdland tract. Sidewalk medians exist in residential areas throughout the community, and tree maintenance has typically been the responsibility of the private property owner. This practice is similar to how most cities throughout California handle tree maintenance. In research conducted by staff in the City Landscape Architect's office, however, it was discovered that developers of several housing tracts had dedicated the trees to the City when the projects received final approvals. As a result, the City Attorney's office determined that the City has the responsibility to provide routine maintenance for these trees. To gain an understanding of the size and health condition of the City's urban forest, a physical inventory of street, park, and facility trees was conducted in March 2003, by West Coast Arborist, Inc. (WCA). City trees were defined as those that: I) were growing within the parkway or City sidewalk right-of-way; 2) were growing within the City right-of-way in the Downtown district; and, 3) were not part of a private association or commercial development. To date, 24,500 trees have been identified and inventoried (14,500 street trees; 10,000 park and facility trees). In addition to identifying tree species, size and health, site configuration, presence of overhead wires, and size of parkway strip, the locations were recorded so that all trees could be directly linked to a Geographical Information System (GIS) for mapping purposes. Based on the inventory data, a management plan was developed which considered tree trimming needs based on tree species and location. Faster growing species (Fruitless Mulberry, Ash, and Locust trees) would be trimmed annually along with young trees, planted less than 4-years. Consistent early pruning of young trees allows for the establishment of a strong structural branching pattern, enabling the tree to develop quicker and avoid future expensive pruning and hazard removal. Older, more mature trees grow at a slower pace and would be trimmed every 3- 7 years, depending upon species needs. Since it was only recently discovered that many street trees are the responsibility of the City, the vast majority of these trees have never received structural pruning. Given Pleasanton's relatively young tree population, it would be prudent to initiate a more aggressive tree SR 06: 139 Page 2