Residents and Sierra Club press Palo Alto to replace eucalyptus in preserves; staff says phased replanting is planned

Residents and environmental advocates told the Parks and Recreation Commission they want replacement plantings after recent eucalyptus removals in the city's nature preserves, while staff said a phased replanting plan is in development.

During public comment, Doria (last name not given) thanked staff for removing eucalyptus trees in "sensitive locations like Esther Clark Park" but urged that the removed trees be replaced with resilient native species because the trees provided habitat and canopy. "I just wanna emphasize the importance of replanting these trees with more resistant native species," the speaker said.

Dashiell Leeds, conservation coordinator for the Sierra Club's Loma Prieta (Lumber—Prieta) chapter, told the commission the organization received a notice that a large number of eucalyptus trees had been removed from Esther Clark Park "and that these removed trees were not replaced." Leeds said the Sierra Club "understand[s] the rationale behind the removal" but asked whether the city has a plan to replace the removed trees and whether that plan would be public.

Staff responded that replanting is planned in collaboration with the Urban Forestry Department and that fall is the typical planting season for establishing new trees. Parks staff said a phased approach is planned to ensure new trees are properly established and that volunteers and partners such as Grassroots Ecology have already begun some plantings; staff reported "trees actually that have been planted out there ... and some are caged. We've partnered with Grassroots Ecology, so they have been assisting with that." Commissioners asked staff to keep the commission and concerned residents informed and to provide a timing update in forthcoming department reports.

Commissioners also asked about funding for replacement plantings. Parks staff said the cost is expected to be absorbed in the department's normal operating budget for planting and that staff would consider building replacement costs into future project budgets where large removals are proposed. "The budget is actually, it's not too expensive on that, so we would take that out of our normal operating budget. We would absorb the cost," staff said when asked where funding would come from.

Commissioners pressed staff to include mitigation planning in future removal projects so impacts are assessed and replacement plantings budgeted simultaneously. "When there is a project that has impact ... the compensation should be folded into the project budget," one commissioner said, urging explicit mitigation commitments and timelines.

Ending: Staff said they would continue collaborating with Urban Forestry, Grassroots Ecology and volunteers on phased replanting, would work toward fall planting phases, and would bring schedule updates to future meetings. The commission asked staff to make the replanting plan public and to include species lists and maps when available.