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Board of Appeals grants Quint-St. appeal, conditions project on planting seven extra trees after unauthorized removals
Summary
Facing neighborhood outrage over unauthorized removals, the Board granted an appeal and required the Department of Public Works not to close out the Palou/Quint streetscape contract until seven additional trees (beyond planned replacements) are planted; the board also accepted enforcement steps and a contractor fine.
The San Francisco Board of Appeals voted 4-0 to grant an appeal over the removal of three apple trees along Palou/Quint and to condition project closeout on the planting of seven additional trees in the immediate area. Vice President Darryl Honda moved the condition after several residents and appellants pressed the board about unpermitted removals and inadequate notice.
Public Works project manager Thomas Reutman acknowledged the department erred. "We jumped the gun," he told commissioners, describing a breakdown in communication that led construction crews to remove trees before a removal permit was verified. Reutman said the contractor lacked a permit when the trees were felled and that the department has issued a fine of $2,122 per tree, a total of $6,366, and is pursuing further corrective measures.
Urban Forester Chris Buck outlined mitigation steps, saying the streetscape project will plant the previously planned trees as part of a larger planting of more than 100 trees for the project and that Public Works has identified at least three to six nearby sites on Quint for immediate replacement plantings. Buck said species and planting details are set: "We would plant fruitless olives," and the project uses 24-inch boxes where suitable.
Several residents, including appellant Zach Karnazes and community organizers, urged stronger remedies. "We are losing more trees than we are gaining consistently year over year," said Casey Asbury of the Demonstration Gardens and Healthy Street Trees Initiative, urging a halt to non-emergency removals while the causes are investigated. Appellant Josh Klipp told the board the $6,000 in-lieu payment is insufficient and pressed the city to pursue penalties under the Public Works Code (article 8, sections cited during testimony).
City attorneys and Public Works told the board they would formalize new internal procedures and trainings to prevent recurrence and would place clear contract and closeout conditions on the project. The board's motion — offered by Vice President Honda and seconded — directed the Public Works project manager not to allow the contract closeout until the seven additional trees were planted in addition to the replacement trees specified in the order. President Anne Lazarus, Commissioners Rachel Tanner and Rick Swig joined Honda in the unanimous vote.
The board recorded the action as a conditional grant of the appeal; the condition requires plantings to be found and installed in the vicinity, with the project manager withholding contract closeout until the condition is satisfied. Public Works said it will forward a detailed written plan to the board's executive director and the bureau of urban forestry will confirm plantings.
