Carmel-by-the-Sea staff told the Forest and Beach Commission that a draft Carmel Forest Master Plan will be posted on the city website and in the Pine Cone notice this week, and that the plan’s steering committee will meet Oct. 21 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Tamara Wysocki, Director, said the draft is the product of several years of community workshops, a citywide canopy inventory and expert review and described the released document as “the meat” of the plan — a concise core of about 14 pages with supporting appendices to follow. “This is definitely a truly community informed science based draft plan,” Wysocki said.

Wysocki and Justin, the city’s forester, said the plan is intended as a long‑range, non‑regulatory roadmap with measurable goals, tracking metrics and annual reporting to guide city decisions on canopy coverage, wildfire resilience and climate adaptation. Wysocki said parts of the master plan may later be incorporated into the general plan or the local coastal program but that the document itself is a “living guiding framework” and not a municipal code.

During public appearances, residents asked for more public notice and time to review the draft. Melanie, a resident, expressed concern that the timeline between the public release and the steering committee meeting would be short for residents on vacation and urged a longer public review period. Wysocki responded that the draft will be posted on the website “tomorrow morning” and that steering‑committee materials will be noticed; she said the steering committee meeting would provide an opportunity to refine the draft before it goes to CEQA review.

Commissioners asked staff how the draft relates to prior plans and appendices. Wysocki and commenters noted the 2001 forest plan and said the new draft will keep core policy language in the short main document while using appendices for tree lists, technical analyses and other supporting material. Wysocki said the city aims to finish refinements and proceed to council adoption and implementation planning by early 2026.

The commission also heard operational updates tied to the plan’s implementation: staff announced a recent hire for a project manager position and introduced Renee Aldama as acting assistant city forester; the hires were presented as measures to accelerate implementation and reduce a staffing gap reported after a departure in public works.

The city said next steps are to post the draft, collect public feedback at the Oct. 21 steering committee meeting, incorporate revisions, run CEQA analysis and prepare for council consideration. Staff emphasized the plan’s focus on measurable targets, community engagement and annual public reporting as implementation tools.