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Mountain View board denies heritage-tree removal at 2415 Benjamin Drive
Summary
The City of Mountain View Parks and Recreation and Urban Forestry Board on Feb. 11 denied an appeal to remove a heritage Podocarpus at 2415 Benjamin Drive, finding the tree healthy and recommending mitigation first; the board voted unanimously to uphold staff's denial.
Mountain View’s Parks and Recreation and Urban Forestry Board on Feb. 11 voted to deny an appeal seeking removal of a heritage tree at 2415 Benjamin Drive, upholding staff’s recommendation that the tree not be removed under current evidence.
Forestry Manager Russell Hanson told the board the subject is a Podocarpus gracilias about 22 inches in diameter that is in good health and fair structure, with only minor canopy imbalance. Hanson said staff found no evidence the tree’s condition met the city's removal criteria and that issues alleged by the applicant could likely be addressed through corrective pruning or targeted root work rather than removal. "We did not find that the condition of the tree required its removal," Hanson said during his presentation.
Why it matters: the tree is designated as a heritage specimen under city code and removal requires specific findings. The property owner or an authorized applicant may seek removal,…
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