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Board begins groundwork for tree-ordinance revision, using Arbor Day Foundation resources
Summary
Members discussed using an Arbor Day Foundation tool and model ordinances (examples cited from DC and Atlanta) to shape a tree ordinance suited to Charles Town's size; board members emphasized coordinating with planning and council before proposing fines or private-property rules.
The board opened a conversation about revising the municipal tree ordinance and said it has circulated resources from the Arbor Day Foundation along with a North Carolina state extension publication and examples from larger cities for reference. The Chair said the foundation is working on a tool that will produce draft ordinance language based on local inputs and that the board should build a basic knowledge base of goals before drafting local provisions.
"We're looking for something, you know, we're like an 8 to 15,000-person sized city...we want provisions that have some teeth in planting," the Chair said, noting that larger municipalities such as DC and Atlanta were useful references but may not be appropriate for the town's scale. Members agreed to coordinate revisions with the planning department to avoid conflicting rules and to consider a list of approved trees and processes for permitting removals on private property.
Katie noted she is on the committee working with the contractor revising multiple ordinances and said that process will likely take over a year; members welcomed taking time to produce thoughtful, locally appropriate language rather than rushing to adopt complex code from much bigger cities.
