Edmonds council advances limited tree-code edits as residents press for broader review

Edmonds City Council members discussed a set of narrowly scoped amendments to the city's tree-protection code on Tuesday, hearing residents urge a broader, science-based overhaul while staff recommended limited legal fixes and a new optional method to calculate replacement obligations.

Residents urged delay. "My goal is to have a comprehensive look at this code and to end up with a consistent defensible code," said Deborah Ashland, an Edmonds resident, during audience comment. Arlene Williams, another resident, asked councilors to "wait for an urban forester to be hired to fix the code," saying several proposed changes could weaken protections for large trees.

Why it matters: The amendments are framed as a short-term response to legal issues raised in recent litigation; council and staff said a separate, broader landmark-tree and private-property tree-code review is already planned and will require an urban-forest planner. Some residents warned…