Laws on trees, townhomes and sports courts to be reviewed
By Sophia Fischer sfischer@theacorn.com

The Thousand Oaks City Council has approved the review of several city ordinances that involve oak trees, existing townhomes and condominiums, and sports courts.

The issues were raised by the Residents Roundtable, an 11member advisory group appointed by the council to study issues and provide the council with recommendations. All except one of the roundtable's suggestions were approved by the council. "Step back and look hard athings that aren't being used and maybe they aren't needed anymore," said Ray Tjulander, a former Residents Roundtable member who studied the issues and made the presentation to the council. "Clean up the books and let's concentrate on those things that are of value to the city."

The first issue proposed three changes to requirements for oak trees on residential property. The roundtable urged the council to support relaxing those rules to ease the financial and time-consuming burden on residents. The current code requires that residents seek city approval for any change to any oak tree on private property and pay corresponding fees.

In the belief that residents avoid planting oak trees in their yards due to restrictive city regulations, the roundtable urged the council to consider exempting owner-planted, nursery stock oak trees from city code. The council approved the recommendation.

"Current city code actually is a detriment for people planting an oak tree," Tjulander said. "I think oak trees are nice and I would like to have a lot more in the city."

To make it easier for residents to prune diseased oaks or encroaching branches, the roundtable urged the authorization of certain licensed arborists to do the work without obtaining city permits. This was denied by the council by a 3-2 vote, with Councilmembers Claudia Bill-de la Pea, Jacqui Irwin and Mayor Dennis Gillette voting against it, and Councilmembers Tom Glancy and Andy Fox in support.

"Staff finds this is quite a challenge to do," said Bill-de la Pea, referring to the difficulties in how to determine what arborists qualify. "This proposal, unfortunately, is another step toward weakening the ordinance."

The third item eliminates city review of changes to common area landscaping in residential developments two years after occupancy. This was approved by the council by a 3-2 vote. Gillette and Bill-de la Pea voted against the suggestion.

"This could result in the introduction of landscaping that is totally inconsistent with city guidelines," Bill-de la Pea said.

The oak tree ordinance suggestions will be sent to the planning commission for review and recommendation and will come back to the council.

In discussing all of the suggestions, council members had several concerns.

One involved the difficulty in differentiating between ownerplanted and historic oak trees in the future. Another was establishing criteria based on the size and age of a tree.

"If you've got an oak tree, regardless of size, regardless of health, you have to come down to the city," Fox said. "This needs analysis."

Bill-de la Pea and Gillette expressed concern that changes to current law could weaken protection of oak trees in the city.

"We have to keep this whole conversation in context," Gillette

said. "This oak tree is one of the most symbolic things we have in this community-it's our namesake tree. Former councils have done everything they could to protect these trees."

But other council members felt the issue was worth revisiting.

"We're not establishing policy. We are only authorizing further study," Glancy said. "I don't think we're hurting anything at all by looking at it more completely."

"It's reasonable to bring in some rationality that allows residents to plant oak trees withouworrying 10 years down the road if they want to move that oak tree," Irwin said. But Bill-de la Pea pointed outhat existing ordinances already make exceptions when necessaryincluding removal of a tree. She recognized the work of the Residents Roundtable but said she couldn't support any change to the code involving oak trees.

The council also unanimously agreed to authorize the roundtable to study municipal regulations for additions and alterations to existing townhomes and condominiums and to establish guidelines for the installation of sports courts within residential areas. The results will be brought to the council at a future meeting.