Sebastopol boards deny permit to remove two protected Douglas firs at Village Green

The Sebastopol Design Review Board and Tree Board voted 3-0 on July 23 to deny a homeowners association's application to remove two protected Douglas firs at 555 Norley Street (Village Green).

Planning staff introduced the application as a request from the Covert Lane Homeowners Association to remove two Douglas firs (one reported at about 31 inches diameter and another at about 17 inches) and a smaller tulip tree. City arborist Ben Anderson reviewed the site and recommended denying removal of the two Douglas firs and noted that the tulip tree does not meet the municipal code's size/native-species threshold requiring a permit.

Ben Anderson, the city arborist, said the larger Douglas fir has a codominant trunk 'a common structural defect'but "it's been this way for decades and hasn't failed," and that the tree could be preserved with standard mitigation such as cabling, pruning and subordinating one leader. On the smaller fir, Anderson described red ring rot but said his sounding of the trunk from about 4 to 5 feet "all sounded good" and that the decay had not rendered the tree unsafe: "It's basically just making the tree into a tube," he said of red ring rot's effect on Douglas firs, adding that many trees can stand with that condition for a long time.

Valerie Conger, president of the homeowners association and the applicant, told the board she favors removal because "one of them is leaning right over my unit, and I'm a little bit nervous about it going," and said she feared a collapse could damage buildings. Other residents spoke during public comment: Peter Conroy, a Village Green board member, asked whether the arborist sounded the trunk at a particular height and urged aggressive mitigation if removal was not approved; L'Oreal Golden Hawk, identifying herself as an executive producer organizing fundraising concerts to protect trees, said she would pursue public advocacy and legal options to protect the trees and the canopy.

Board members questioned staff and the arborist about liability, notice to owners, and whether repeated removal requests at the property indicate a need for a master landscape plan. Staff confirmed owners (not renters) receive notices and that the homeowners association manages removal decisions for the property'about 39 units in all.

After deliberation a board member moved to deny the application to remove the two Douglas firs; the motion was seconded and the board voted 3-0 to deny the permit, with three members absent (Christine Lovell, Marshall Balfe and Mandeep). Planning staff announced a seven-day appeal period that begins the afternoon of July 23 and ends July 30 at 5 p.m.; appeals must be filed with the planning department at 7120 Bodega Avenue before 5 p.m.

The denial was based on the city arborist's findings and the code's criteria for removal, which staff and the city arborist said were not met for these trees. The tulip tree named in the application was not subject to the permit process because it does not meet the code's size/species threshold and may be removed at the HOA's discretion.

If an appeal is filed within the seven-day window, staff will process it per the city's standard procedures and notify interested parties.