SANTA PAULA : Panel Endorses Plan to Protect Trees

The Santa Paula Planning Commission has endorsed a proposed ordinance that would protect mature trees on public property throughout the city.

Under the ordinance, a permit would be required to cut down any tree that the City Council designates as historic. A permit would also be needed to chop down oak trees more than 5 1/2 inches in diameter and sycamore trees more than 25 inches in circumference.

The Design Assistance Committee, a group that makes recommendations to the Planning Commission on the city’s historic landmarks, is compiling a list of possibly historic trees, said Planning Director Joan Kus.

Mature trees more than 12 inches in diameter would be exempt from the permit requirement if they are on developed property. Pruning a tree would also be allowed unless it endangers the tree.

The City Council is scheduled to consider the ordinance in February, Kus said. If approved, the ordinance would take effect one month after the council vote.

If the ordinance passes, the city would hire a forester to prepare a comprehensive plan to replace any tree that is dead, infested, diseased or could cause structural harm or damage, Kus said.

The ordinance is significant because it would preserve Santa Paula’s historical landscape, Kus said. “We don’t have procedures to protect the big old trees that are the dominant feature of our landscape,” she said.