Petaluma tree advisory committee forms Protect, Grow and Engage ad hocs to implement urban forestry plan

The Petaluma Tree Advisory Committee voted on March 18 to establish three ad hoc groups — Protect, Grow and Engage — designed to carry out work tied to the city’s recently adopted Urban Forestry Management Plan.

The chair opened the meeting and framed the item as a way to align subcommittee work with plan elements, saying the ad hocs would handle tasks such as advocacy and education around the Tree Protection Ordinance (Protect), tree‑planting and on‑the‑ground projects (Grow), and public‑facing materials and website updates (Engage). The committee then discussed membership rules and timelines before taking a formal vote.

Why it matters: committee members said the ad hocs are intended to concentrate volunteer effort on specific, short‑term projects — from educating councilmembers about unresolved ordinance language to organizing neighborhood outreach and pilot plantings — and to keep momentum following adoption of the urban forestry plan.

Committee members and staff discussed practical details and next steps. Taryn, a committee member, proposed partnering with the Parks and Recreation Commission to provide “eyes on” trees in parks and to coordinate site visits; she also suggested composing a memo template and project action plan for ad hoc work. Drew, representing city staff, told members that planning staff and consultants (notably Heather Hynes and consulting arborist Ben Anderson) would take council feedback from the TPO first reading, flesh out recommended amendments (fees, noticing and encroachment vs. removal fee language), and return a staff report ahead of the ordinance’s second reading.

Public participation and volunteers: Eve O'Rourke, who spoke during general public comment, urged adoption of a public awareness project to reduce unnecessary tree removals. Committee members volunteered for the ad hocs during the meeting: Taryn and Diane for Protect; Bill, Keith and Stephanie for Grow; and the chair and Stephanie for Engage. The chair confirmed the committee had at least the minimum membership to form each ad hoc that same night.

Finances and resources: the chair noted the committee has discretionary funds of about $11,000 that could be applied to small pilot projects or to leverage partnerships, and members discussed neighborhood outreach and whether the city maintains detailed park tree inventories (staff said comprehensive inventories are not generally maintained in parks at that granularity; canopy and targeted inventories are part of the urban forestry work).

Vote and next steps: Committee member Taryn moved to adopt the three ad hoc groups with the membership identified during the meeting; the motion was seconded by Stephanie and passed in a roll‑call vote. Staff agreed to invite Patrick Carter from the city manager’s office to an upcoming meeting (anticipated in April) to report on the status of a Cal Fire‑related urban forestry grant and whether funds remain to support a one‑year urban‑forester position or consultant. Drew also outlined upcoming public items staff will present, including a grazing program schedule, five recently planted 36‑inch‑box trees at the Lucchesi project, and an Arbor Day proclamation scheduled for April 20.

The chair closed the public hearing after the vote and adjourned the meeting at 4:50 p.m. The ad hocs are expected to meet outside of Brown Act restrictions and to return project templates and progress reports to the full committee in coming meetings.