Council grants variance to remove heritage trees at 5305 Wurzbach, negotiates mitigation payment

The City Council on May 6 approved a variance to the tree preservation ordinance allowing the removal of three heritage trees and one large tree at 5305 Wurzbach Road, with a negotiated mitigation payment instead of the full fee-in-lieu.

Planning staff said the 1.43-acre lot is L-shaped and the trees slated for removal are in the building footprint or the proposed parking expansion. The applicant proposed retaining roughly 70% of the site’s existing trees and asked the council to reduce the fee-in-lieu from $10,600 to $1,500 because the physical tree removal and site clearing would itself cost roughly $10,000, the applicant said.

Council members said they value mature canopy but also noted the applicant’s plan to expand a Leon Valley business and the potential for new tenants to generate sales tax and property tax revenue. After discussion, Councilor Roscoe proposed a compromise to split the mitigation amount; Councilor Heil seconded. The council approved the variance and the adjusted mitigation payment, which the motion set at $5,300 (split between the city and the applicant per council motion).

Staff noted that the mitigation fee will be paid into the city’s tree mitigation fund, a restricted account used for tree planting at approved sites in Leon Valley. Staff recommended approval because the lot’s configuration makes it difficult to preserve all trees while accommodating the proposed building expansion.

Outcome: Council approved the variance and set the fee-in-lieu at $5,300 after a motion by Councilor Roscoe and a second by Councilor Heil; the motion carried (recorded as carried in the meeting transcript). The applicant will proceed with development per the approved site plan and the city will receive the revised mitigation payment for the tree-mitigation fund.