OAK REGULATIONS REVISED CITY COUNCIL MEMBERS SAY TREES STILL WELL PROTECTED.Byline: Eugene Tong Staff Writer SANTA CLARITA Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, - The City Council has revised Santa Clarita's long-standing oak tree protection laws, striking what officials believe is a balance between preservation and homeowner rights. The council this week unanimously approved the proposed revisions, which still require another reading, more than a month after postponing action amid community protest. A previous draft included an amendment proposed by the city Planning city planning, process of planning for the improvement of urban centers in order to provide healthy and safe living conditions, efficient transport and communication, adequate public facilities, and aesthetic surroundings. Commission allowing homeowners to cut down as many as five oak trees over five years without a permit. Council members had said that draft's wording did not reflect their intent to streamline laws to aid residents in caring for the trees. ``Everybody can relax,'' Councilwoman Laurene Weste said. ``We're not removing anything. We're just making it easier for homeowners.'' The council adopted an earlier version that allows owners of single- family homes to remove as many as five oaks Five Oaks is a hamlet in the Horsham District of West Sussex, England. The hamlet lies about 3km north of Billingshurst on the roman road of Stane Street (now the A29) at the junction with the Western end of the A264. from their property - an increase from three trees - with the planning director's approval. Removing a ``heritage oak tree'' - one at least 108 inches in girth GIRTH., A girth or yard is a measure of length. The word is of Saxon origin, taken from the circumference of the human body. Girth is contracted from girdeth, and signifies as much as girdle. See Ell. - or more than six oak trees will require permission from the city Planning Commission. In the new version, a previous exemption from the laws for oak trees 6 inches in circumference has been extended to trees 25 inches or less in circumference. City Manager Ken Pulskamp said the change was intended to prevent homeowners from automatically cutting down trees about to fall under city protection. ``People who would let them grow were cutting them down before they mature,'' he said. ``We have something that (won't) penalize pe·nal·ize tr.v. pe·nal·ized, pe·nal·iz·ing, pe·nal·iz·es 1. To subject to a penalty, especially for infringement of a law or official regulation. See Synonyms at punish. 2. homeowners just because they have oak trees on their property,'' said Councilman Bob Kellar. But Lynne Plambeck, president of the Santa Clarita Organization for Planning the Environment, questioned relaxing one of the city's founding ordinances at the behest of some property owners. ``We don't put the speed limit back just because someone complained you're driving too fast,'' she said. The revised ordinance, which will require a second reading before adoption, also waives the city's $80 fee for a pruning pruning, the horticultural practice of cutting away an unwanted, unnecessary, or undesirable plant part, used most often on trees, shrubs, hedges, and woody vines. permit, but homeowners must use a city-certified arborist for the job. Encroachment An illegal intrusion in a highway or navigable river, with or without obstruction. An encroachment upon a street or highway is a fixture, such as a wall or fence, which illegally intrudes into or invades the highway or encloses a portion of it, diminishing its width or area, but - or any intrusion into a tree's protected zone - is now categorized as either ``minor'' or ``major,'' with each requiring different permitting. Laws were adopted in one of the 18-year-old city's first ordinances to ``protect and preserve oak trees in the city'' that were threatened by development. Oak trees - a feature of the city's seal - are a sensitive issue for many local residents. When a road project in unincorporated Stevenson Ranch Stevenson Ranch, California (in the 91381 ZIP Code) is a Los Angeles County, USA, unincorporated community west of Santa Clarita a few miles south of Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. The Stevenson Ranch fountain was redone in 2007. targeted an ancient oak for removal, dozens rallied behind activist John Quigley John B. Quigley is a professor of law at the Moritz College of Law at the Ohio State University, where he is the Presidents' Club Professor of Law. In 1995 he was recipient of The Ohio State University Distinguished Scholar Award. , who staged a protest by sitting on its branches for 70 days. The tree - dubbed Old Glory - was moved a quarter-mile down the road just over a year ago. Eugene Tong, (661) 257-5253 eugene.tong(at)dailynews.com |
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