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Commissioners ask staff to review tree preservation ordinance after other cities' recent removals
Summary
A commissioner requested staff review the tree preservation ordinance to evaluate permit activity, compliance and species guidance after learning of large-scale removals in a neighboring city; staff agreed to report back in December or January.
Commissioners at the Nov. 19 meeting asked staff to revisit Lakewood's tree preservation ordinance to assess how the code is working in practice and whether updates are needed.
A commissioner (Speaker 6) asked staff to gather information on permits to remove trees, any fees collected and whether the ordinance is producing compliance problems or pushback from homeowners, builders or the industry. "I'd like to see if the compliance with the ordinance is... problematic or whether we're getting pushback," the commissioner said.
Another commissioner (Speaker 7) pointed to a recent case in the nearby city of Lacey where contractors had removed about 300 trees and later found environmental or infrastructure problems, suggesting Lakewood should consider species guidance or lessons learned. Staff (Kristen Spear) said they would compile that information and bring a summary to the commission at the Dec. 3 meeting or, if not ready, in January.
The request is advisory: commissioners instructed staff to research permit counts, fee collections and species guidance and report back; no formal amendments or motions to change the ordinance were made during the meeting.
Staff will return information to the commission for future consideration and possible code revisions.
