Agoura Hills council introduces updated protected-tree ordinance, adds sycamore and walnut

The Agoura Hills City Council introduced Ordinance 25-482 on Nov. 12, a comprehensive update to the city’s protected-tree regulations designed to streamline permit processing, prioritize retention of trees, and incentivize new plantings.

Assistant Planning Director Robbie Nessevic and the city arborist described six planning principles guiding the ordinance: consolidate protections into a single code section (9-657); create clear permit categories (general, hazardous, development); add incentives for owners to voluntarily register plantings so they are not subject to mitigation; scale mitigation based on trunk diameter rather than treating all removals the same; raise the protection threshold from 2 inches to 6 inches trunk diameter; and add species protections for the California sycamore and the Southern California black walnut.

Nessevic said the change to a 6-inch protection threshold aligns Agoura Hills with neighboring jurisdictions and targets protection to trees that provide measurable environmental value. He also described a mitigation approach that scales replacement requirements with the size of the removed tree and a proposal to establish an in-lieu mitigation fund so replacements can occur off-site or on city land.

Councilmembers repeatedly praised the ordinance’s emphasis on incentives and streamlined processing. Councilmember Klein Lopez noted that the prior rules carried cost burdens that disincentivized owners from planting or maintaining protected trees; multiple members said the update strikes a balance between protection and homeowner burden.

Councilmember Deborah Klein Lopez moved to introduce the ordinance and Councilmember Chris Anstead seconded. The motion passed on a 5-0 roll call and staff indicated additional details such as fee schedules and a mitigation fund will be established by separate resolution following adoption.