Orinda council introduces broader tree-management ordinance changes to allow insurance exceptions and new review factors

The Orinda City Council on April 7 introduced Ordinance 25-03, a zoning-text amendment to Chapter 17.21 (tree management) of the Orinda Municipal Code, authorizing a revised exception process for protected-tree removal requests and expanding factors planners may consider when deciding permits.

Staff associate planner Darren Hughes told the council the revisions were prompted by resident reports that insurance companies had been requiring tree removal to obtain or retain homeowner insurance, sometimes involving large, old oaks adjacent to structures. Hughes said the amendment would add a documented-exception pathway for circumstances where tree removal is required to obtain or retain insurance coverage and would clarify the definition of protected trees and other technical details.

Key proposed changes in the introduced version (version A) include:

- A clarified schedule for "protected tree" designations: on developed parcels, certain oak species become protected at 12 inches diameter at breast height (DBH); on vacant parcels or within identified downtown zones protected trees are those not on a disallowed plant list and…