Laguna Beach council workshop probes public tree pruning after residents raise view and safety concerns

Laguna Beach officials and residents spent the council's study session discussing public tree management, pruning standards and complaints that municipal eucalyptus and other trees are blocking ocean views and posing safety risks.

City Arborist Matthew Barker told the council the Public Works and Utilities Department manages roughly 3,300 public trees and follows an inspection-and-pruning cycle intended to "promote tree health, ensure public safety, and maximize the economic, human health, societal, and environmental benefits" of the urban forest. Barker said the city uses a web-based GIS platform tied to the city's authorized tree-care contractor, divides the city into three pruning sections (downtown, north and south) and aims for every tree to receive a health-and-risk inspection and appropriate pruning at least once every two years; downtown trees are inspected and pruned annually.

Barker described the pruning strategies the city uses and the limits on certain practices. "Crown cleaning," he said, "involves removing dead, broken, poorly attached branches from the crown," while crown raising clears canopy over sidewalks and roads. He said crown reduction can be used in condition-driven circumstances but "should not be performed on healthy, structurally sound trees for aesthetic reshaping or to improve a view." Barker also warned against tree topping, calling it…