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Normandy Park to consider removing five City Hall Park trees after staff, parks commission recommend removal
Summary
Staff and the parks commission recommended removing five aging trees at City Hall Park; council members voiced concern about canopy loss and asked for larger replacement trees and clearer agenda notices on when council authority is limited by municipal code. The contract for removal is scheduled for an April 4 vote.
City staff told the Normandy Park City Council on March 24 that arborists and the parks commission recommend removing five front-of-City-Hall trees because they were topped decades ago, have dropped large branches and are damaging the parking lot. Staff said bids came back lower than earlier estimates and the city will present the lowest responsible bidder for council approval at the April 4 meeting.
Why it matters: Council members raised concerns about preserving the city’s tree canopy and about what species and sizes will replace mature trees. Council member Susan West pressed staff to pursue substantial replacement specimens — she said she hoped replacements would be large enough to restore canopy and habitat, not “very tiny, like a 10-foot tree.”
Legal authority and procedure: A staff speaker who identified herself as Heidi cited Normandy Park Municipal Code Title 13, Chapter 30, Section 10, and explained the municipal code delegates planting, care, maintenance and removal of trees on city-owned property to the city manager or designee, meaning council’s role for the April 4 item is to authorize expenditure rather than direct operational decisions. "That authority is delegated to the City Manager at this point," Heidi said, adding council is free to amend the code if it wishes.
Council response: Several council members said they were not previously aware of that delegation and requested future agendas note when council is voting only on funding. Deputy Mayor Sue Holheimer and others said the parks commission’s recommendation and the lower bids made them comfortable with staff proceeding, while some members asked staff to ensure replacement trees are as large as feasible and that the City Hall Park master plan inform removals.
Next step: The tree-removal contract will be presented for council action on April 4; no vote occurred at the March 24 special meeting.
