Encinitas planning commissioners recommend mature‑tree ordinance with amendments, 4–1

The Encinitas Planning Commission voted 4–1 to recommend the city adopt a new Mature Tree Preservation Ordinance, after a special hearing in which staff outlined definitions, mitigation rules and enforcement tools and commissioners pressed for clearer purpose language, tighter tracking and higher penalties.

Senior planner Evan Jednak presented the draft ordinance, which staff said defines a "mature tree" as any tree with an 11‑inch or greater trunk diameter, native tree species at 9 inches and certain native scrub oak species at 4 inches; the diameter is measured at 4½ feet above the base. The draft would require a city tree removal permit for mature trees, apply a two‑year lookback for recent removals, and use a mitigation hierarchy: preserve the tree when feasible, replace it on‑site if possible, then consider off‑site replacement or an in‑lieu fee.

"The primary intent of the ordinance is to preserve mature trees, so the first strategy is always to preserve the tree unless it's infeasible," Evan Jednak said during his presentation.

Staff described replacement ratios in the draft: a default 3:1 on‑site replacement that reduces to 2:1 when replacements are entirely native, and a default 4:1 off‑site…