Angels Council discusses, defines tree ordinance

Posted on April 5, 2013

by Alicia Castro

During Tuesday’s Angel Camp City Council meeting the table was stacked high with pages of the Oak and Heritage Tree Ordinance, which was brought before the council in a workshop format.

“Within a municipal code, the ordinance is the nuts and bolts – it can make or break the whole deal,” said Planning Director David Hanham, who discussed the long-discussed ordinance.

As it now stands, according to Hanham, it is designed to protect oak and heritage trees, the latter being defined as any tree that is 24 inches in diameter at breast height – regardless of indigenous status – or any tree that is 100 years old.

Under the ordinance and its lengthy guidelines, residents with large parcels of land and business-property owners are not permitted to cut down oak or heritage trees without planting other trees or putting money into a city-controlled fund.

Angels Planning Commissioner Kristi Reesman said she was the sole “no” vote when this ordinance first passed through the commission in 2010.

“It was largely born out of frustration,” she said, referring to clear-cutting that had occurred prior to the drafted ordinance. “It’s complicated, punitive and burdensome to land owners, whether they own a large lot or a small business plot.”

Reesman said although a city’s general plan needs a protected tree ordinance, she suggested Angels Camp’s “not be so burdensome that the city couldn’t enforce it.”

“Zoning is tough,” Hanham said. “No one likes to mess with it because it’s dealing with peoples’ rights in a sense, in that it’s on their property. But it’s a necessary evil.”

Council member Wes Kulm agreed.

“It’s a classic example of protecting individual rights versus a concession of rights while living in an urban community,” he said. “With this, it’s about the greater good.”

With that being said, Kulm went on to offer constructive criticism, echoing the point that the ordinance generally seemed to approach the issue from a punitive standpoint rather than being incentive based.

In terms of codification, Interim City Attorney Derek Cole requested oak trees be moved into a separate chapter. The council approved this movement.

Furthermore, Cole summarized the night’s discussion, saying that the items discussed would be presented to the Planning Commission, which in turn would give its thoughts and comments.

“Now, we can look at what we need to do to better define things,” Hanham said after the meeting. “There was a lot of information, and we can pare that down.”

Contact Alicia Castro at alicia@calaverasenterprise.com.