Tamarac planning board backs ordinance to clarify tree rules, widen tree fund uses

The Tamarac Planning Board on Aug. 13 recommended the City Commission adopt a text amendment to Chapter 10, Article 4, Section 10‑4.4 of the City of Tamarac Land Development Code to clarify tree preservation rules and broaden uses of the tree preservation trust fund.

Planning staff said the amendments were prompted by two years of enforcing a local ordinance adopted after the city left Broward County's program and by complaints and ambiguities discovered in implementation. “We basically copied and pasted Broward County's ordinance,” Planning staff said, and during enforcement staff identified gaps in definitions and in how the trust fund could be used.

The proposal adds definitions (including hazardous tree and nuisance tree), modifies exemptions and the tree‑removal permit process, clarifies responsibility for trees adjacent to public rights of way, and expands eligible trust‑fund expenditures to include private property work. Staff read the proposed trust‑fund language into the record: “Monies in trust funds shall be expended, utilized and dispersed for the planting of trees and any other ancillary costs associated with the planting of trees in the city including but not limited to planting trees and removing hazardous trees on real property within the city, supporting tree maintenance and preservation activities, funding educational outreach programs, providing tree giveaways to residents to promote long term canopy preservation, and to cover the expense of relocation of trees to public lands.”

Why it matters: staff said the changes are intended to eliminate ambiguity that produced enforcement and outreach problems since the city began administering a separate local ordinance in 2023. Among practical effects, staff told the board the city will ask homeowners who remove small trees (diameter under 18 inches DBH) to apply for a free removal permit so inspectors can verify whether the property meets minimum required tree counts. “We are asking those residents just to apply for a free removal permit. We're not gonna, charge them with any fee,” the staff presenter said.

Key provisions and limits - Hazardous‑tree standard and authority: The ordinance adds a written definition of hazardous trees and says a hazardous tree “shall be removed when in the professional judgment of a certified arborist or a landscape architect licensed by the Florida Board of Landscape Architecture” it poses a danger. The director of community development retains final authority to determine whether a tree qualifies as hazardous and whether a removal permit is required. - Exemptions and minimum tree counts: The amendment clarifies that trees planted as mitigation, historical or specimen trees, or trees whose removal would leave a property below the minimum tree quantity specified in Table 10‑4.6 require a permit. Staff told the board that single‑family homes built before 2018 remain subject to their existing minimums (one tree in front, two in back) while homes built after 2018 remain subject to the newer requirements (two front, three back). - Trust fund uses: The trust fund may be used for planting and related costs on public and private property, including removing hazardous trees on private property, supporting maintenance, education programs and tree giveaways; city administrative costs for public‑land plantings remain capped at 20 percent. Staff said any dispersal would be at the director’s discretion and in accordance with adopted city policies.

Board questions and staff clarifications Board members asked who pays for removal when the city requires removal of a hazardous tree on private property. Staff and the director clarified that property owners remain responsible for removal costs, but the expanded trust fund gives the director discretion to provide financial assistance when property owners cannot afford removal. The director observed these funds could be structured in the future as grants or other assistance to help low‑income homeowners or associations afford costly removals.

Process and next steps The Planning Board voted 5‑0 to forward a favorable recommendation to the City Commission. Staff said the ordinance will be heard by the City Commission on first reading Aug. 27, 2025, and second reading Sept. 10, 2025.

Ending note Staff presented the amendments as technical clarifications and implementation fixes that align the city's local rules with state preemption limits and with operational experience in the two years since local enforcement began.