Oak Creek council approves development agreement allowing $25,999 mitigation for trees or beautification at 7655 S. Sixth St.

The Oak Creek Common Council on April 15 approved a development agreement with 7655 South Sixth Street LLC that accepts a $25,999 payment from the developer in lieu of meeting the municipal tree-replacement ratios on a heavily wooded parcel at 7655 South Sixth Street.

The payment, which council members amended into the agreement as section A.3, will be payable to the city and may be used "for the installation of said trees or to be used for other beautification projects by the City at locations that are consistent with the preservation and replacement of trees and woodlands in the City," the motion states. The motion to approve the development agreement as amended was made by Alderman Florek and seconded by Alderman Fritz and carried on a roll call vote.

The council heard from Christie Lane, the City of Oak Creek’s Community Development Director, who said the northern portion of the parcel is densely wooded and that complying with the city’s 2022 tree-preservation rules (which require replacement at a 1:3 or 1:4 ratio depending on diameter) is not feasible on-site. Lane said the applicant expects to build an approximately 71,000-square-foot light industrial/warehouse building on the northern half and can only plant about 10 trees on the site; the ordinance’s 1:3–1:4 replacement would have required hundreds of new trees.

Lane said the developer’s offer would pay for the purchase of 164 trees (at smaller sizes), but would not cover the city’s estimated labor and equipment costs to install that many trees. City staff estimated installation labor and equipment costs at roughly $67,000 to $74,000 if the city were to plant the full replacement number.

A representative for the developer, Bridal Fisher (address provided on the record), told the council the developer will purchase 164 smaller-caliper trees and also plant 10 larger-caliper (about 2.5 to 3 inches) trees on site; Fisher confirmed the developer’s offered payment to the city is $25,999 and said the higher line-item total in the offer materials reflected those 10 higher-cost on-site trees.

Several alderpersons pressed staff and each other on how the money would be used. Alderman Greg suggested the council consider using funds for public art or other beautification projects rather than planting and maintaining hundreds of new trees, noting maintenance and long-term care costs. Mayor Daniel J. Bukkiewicz, council members and staff said the approval would likely require the city to revisit the tree-preservation ordinance to provide clearer alternatives for unique development situations.

City staff and the developer also discussed that the developer’s payment would not meet the original code’s 1:3 or 1:4 replacement ratios; instead, the payment equates to a roughly 1:1 replacement in purchased trees. Lane told the council the developer is offering 64 replacement trees by a 1:1 calculation in some of the documents, and elsewhere the materials reflected 164 smaller trees; staff clarified to the council that the developer’s final offer and the amount to be placed in the agreement is $25,999 and that will be captured in the amended section A.3.

Council members noted the city’s forestry and parks department would have to decide whether to use the funds to buy trees and absorb installation costs, to apply the funds to a broader mitigation or beautification fund, or to leverage the city’s existing annual tree CIP (capital improvement program) budget. Director Chobitoski confirmed the city generally places tree orders annually and that staff could work to coordinate timing and use of funds if the council wanted to delay tree purchases to accommodate a larger mitigation plan.

The agreement approved by the council allows the city discretion to apply the payment toward planting or other beautification projects consistent with replacement and preservation goals. Council members and staff said the approval is likely to prompt a review of the tree-preservation ordinance to clarify acceptable mitigation options in future cases.

The motion’s formal language (as read into the record) amended section A.3 to state the species and payment amount of $25,999 and authorized the city to use that sum for tree installation or other beautification projects in locations consistent with the city’s preservation and replacement policies.

The council’s vote concluded the matter for this meeting; staff said the city will update the development agreement text to reflect the clarified $25,999 amount and return records to show how the funds are used.