Ord 0524-REGULATING THE PLANTING, MAINTAINING AND REMOVAL OF TREES ADJACENT TO OR WITHIN THE STREETS OF THE TOWN OF LOS GATOS; PROVIDING FOR THE ISSUING OF PERMITS IN CONNECTION i
ORDINANCE NO. 524
AN ORDINANCE REGULATING THE PLANTING, MAINTAINING AND REMOVAL
OF TREES ADJACENT TO OR WITHIN THE STREETS OF THE TOWN OF LOS
GATOS; PROVIDING FOR THE ISSUING OF PERMITS IN CONNECTION'
THEREWITH; PRESCRIBING PENALTIES FOR THE VIOLATION OF SAID
ORDINANCE; AND, REPEALING ALL ORDINANCES AND PARTS OF ORDINANCES
IN CONFLICT THEREWITH®
THE TOWN COUNCIL OF THE TOWN OF LOS GATOS DOES ORDAIN AS
FOLLOWS:
Section 1. Purpose: That it'is'for the best interests of
the Town of Los Gatos that °a comprehensive plan for the planting,
maintenance and removal of trees in or which may overhang public
streets within said Town should be developed and established;
and that this ordinance is adopted for the purpose of developing
and providing for such a plan and,program, and for the purpose of
establishing rules and regulations relating to the planting, main-
taining and removal of such trees.
Section 2. This Ordinance shall be known as the "Street
Tree Ordinance of the Town of Los Gatos" and may be cited as such.
Section 3. Definitions
(a) The word "shall" is mandatory.
(b) "Town" is the Town of Los Gatos.
(c) "Town Engineer" is the Town Engineer of the Town
of Los Gatos.
(d) "Person" is any individual, firm, partnership,
association, corporation, company, or organization
of any kind.
(e) "Street Trees" are trees in a public place or along
or within a public street.
(f) "Public Street" means all or any portion of
territory within the Town of Los Gatos set apart
and designated for the use of the public as a
thoroughfare for travel, and includes the sidewalks,
the center and side plots thereof.
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(g) "Owner of the Property" is the person as herein
defined who is the owner of the fee simple title
of the property on which a street tree is planted.
(h) "Parkway Strip" is that public area between the
curb and the sidewalk on a public street.
Section 4. Enforcing Authority The Town Engineer shall
be charged with the enforcement of this Ordinance.
Section 5. Master Tree List:. There is hereby establishes
a Master Street Tree List consisting of the following trees: Purple
Leaf- Plum (Prunus Blireana); Maiden Hair Tree, Ginko (Ginkgo Biloba,
Male only); Sweet Gum (Liquidambar Styraciflua); Holly Oak (Quercus
Ilex);. Paul's Double Flowering English Hawthorn (Crataegus Oxya
_cantha Paulii); Lavalle Hawthorn (Cr.ataegus Lavallei); Washington
Thorn (Crataegus Phaenopyrum); Chinese Pistachio(Pistacia Chinensis);.
Schwedler Maple (Aces Platanoides Schwedleri); Goldenrain Tree
(Koelreuteria Paniculata); Carob (Ceratonia<Siliqua, Selected Forms
Only); Camphor Tree (Cinnamomum Camphora); Sawleaf Zelkova (Zelkova
Serrata); Japanese Privet (Ligustrum Lucidum,.,Helected Forms Oniy);and
Southern Magnolia (Magnolia Grandifiora), and a copy of such list
shall be kept on file in the Office of the Town Engineer. Revisions,
additions or changes in said Master Tree list may be made from time
to time by resolution of the. Town Council of the Town of.Los Gatos.
Section 6. Jurisdiction: The Town Engineer shall have
jurisdiction and control of the planting, setting out, location and
placement of all trees in the public streets of the Town and shall
likewise have supervision, direction and control of the care, trim-
ming, removal, relocation and replacement thereof.
Section 7. Permit to Plant, Move, Remove, Etc It shall
be unlawful for any person to plant, move or remove or replace any
tree in the Public Streets, and public places within the Town of Los
Gatos, or to cause the same to be done, unless and until a permit in
writing to do so shall have been first obtained from the Town Engineer
of said Town. No person, shall place or permit any trees,.shrubs,
or plants in boxes, now or hereafter on any street or sidewalk
without first having applied for and receiving a permit from the
Town Engineer. The Town Engineer may issue a written permit upon
such terms and conditions as he may provide after having determined
that such use will not constitute a public nuisance, and which
said permit shall be revocable at the will of the Town Engineer.
Section 8. Conditional Permit for Removal: As a condition
to the issuance of any permit to remove any trees the Town Engineer
m-ay`require that the person to whom such permit to remove is granted,
shall plant approved trees in the place of those removed. Whenever
such trees have been removed in accordance with such conditional
permit, it shall be a violation of this article for the holder of
such permit to refuse or neglect to plant another tree as such
conditional permit shall specify-
Section 9. Owners of Premises Required to Trim Branches:
The owner of every lot or parcel of land in the Town of Los Gatos
upon which any trees are now or may hereafter be standing shall
rtrimvall branches of: any trees which overhang any public street so
that there shall be a clear height of eight (8) feet above the surface
of the sidewalk and fourteen (14) feet above the surface of the.
remaining traveled portion of the.public street unobstructed by
branches; and, such owner shall remove from such trees all dead,
decayed or broken limbs or, branches that overhang any such public.
street; and, when any such trees are dead, such owner shall remove
the same so that they shall not fall in the public street.
Section 10. Prohibited Trees: A person shall plant along the
public streets of the Town of Los Gatos only those trees as are
designated on the Blaster Street Tree List.
Section ll. Planting: No person shall plant or set out
any tree in or along a public street without first filing an application
and procuring a written permit from the Town Engineer.
Section 12. Large Scale Planting Procedure: Upon receipt of
an application for a written permit to plant or set out any tree or
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trees the Town Engineer shall have the authority to require from
the applicant a detailed declaration of intention in the form of a,
planting plan. All planting plans shall be in duplicate in such
form as designated 'by _the Town Engineer. One copy of each plan
shall when approved by the Town Engineer, be returned to the applicant and
the other copy shall be kept on file in the office of the Town
Engineer. All planting plans shall accurately show;
(a) The proposed street together with its subdivision
of pavement, curb, gutter, parking strip and sidewalk
areas to a definite. indicated scale.
(b) The variety of each and every tree proposed to be
planted and of those already existing within the
proposed street lines, either indicated on the plans
or referenced with a number to a key list
(c) The proposed location of each and every proposed
tree together with the location of each existing
tree within the proposed street line in scaled
relation to the other features of the plan.
(d) The distance between trees in any one row in feet.
(e) The nature of the soil in the planting space, to a
depth of three::.,feet, and all existing and proposed
surface or sub-soil drainage system.
(f) The location of existing native and ornamental trees
which exceed fifteen (15) feet in height (other than
orchard trees but including walnut trees) will be
shown on any tentative subdivision map when presented
to the Town Engineer,
Section 13. Abuse or Mutilation of Trees It shall be
unlawful for any person to (a) damage, cut, carve, or injure the
bark of any street tree: (b) to attach any sign, wire or injurious
material to any street tree; (c) to cause or permit any wire charged
with electricity to come in contact with any street tree; (d) or to
allow any gaseous, liquid, or solid substance harmful to trees to
come in contact with the roots, leaves,, bark, or any part of any street
trees.
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Section 14. Certain Trees Declared Public Nuisances: Any
trees or parts thereof growing in or upon a public street or upon
private property interfering with the use of any public street
or public place in the Town of Los Gatos or trees which in the opinion
of the Town Engineer endangers the life, health, safety, comfort,
or property of any person using such public street or in such public
place, because of the trees location, condition of its limbs, roots
or trunk, or because of its diseased condition, is hereby declared
to be a public nuisance.
Section 15. Proceedure:
(a) Order: The Town Engineer shall order the trimming,
treatment, preservation or removal of trees herein
declared to be a public nuisance. Such order shall
be written and shall state the work to be done.
(b) Service: Such order shall be served upon the owner
by personal delivery, or by mailing a copy thereof to
the last known address of the owner by registered
mail, return receipt requested and by posting a copy
thereof upon the premises. Service is deemed completed
upon personal delivery.to,,the person; mailing or posting.
(c) Time for Compliance: The order shall set forth a
time limit for compliance dependent upon the hazard
and danger created by the violation .--Except in the
case of manifest public danger and immediate ;necessity
no such tree shall be ordered wholly cut down or
removed unless 10 days notice in writing is given to the
owner of the land upon which the tree is situated.
(d) Appeal from Order: A person to whom an order herein
is directed shall have a right to appeal to the Town
Council of the Town of Los Gatos within ten<-• days of
service of the order by filing with the Town Clerk of
the Town of Los Gatos, in duplicate, of a written notice
of -appeal setting forth sPecif;ical.ly his objections and
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the grounds upon which the owner claims the Town
Engineer is in error and praying that the order be
revoked or modified as set forth in the notice of
appeal. The hearing on such appeal shall be set for
the next regular meeting and the owner shall be
notified of the time and place of said hearing, by
writen notice mailed to the owner at the address set
forth on the Notice of Appeal. The Town Council shall
after such hearing , by resolution, affirm, modify or
revoke the order theretofore made by the Town Engineer.
Unless theorder is revoked or modified it shall remain in
full force and be obeyed by the person to whom directed.
No person to whom an order is directed shall fail
to comply with such order within five (5) days after
an appeal.shall have been determined.
(e) Failure to comply Summary Abatement, When a. person
to whom an order is directed shall fail to comply
within the specified time, the Town Engineer shall
remedy the condition or, contract with others for such
purpose and the expense of abatement of such public
nuisance shall be upon the person to whom the order
is directed and.such,expense shall be a lien against
the real property on which such public nuisance is
maintained and shall also be a personal obligation
against the property owner.
Section 16. Permits for Public Utility Installations: All
permits, which are hereinafter needed for the installation of public
utilities shall be issued by the Town Engineer. When a permit is
given by said Town Engineer to any telephone, telegraph, electric power
or other public utility company, to trim or perform .:other operations af-
fecting trees, the amount of such trimming, or the extent of such other
operations shall be limited by the actual necessities of the service
of such utility company and all such work shall be done in a work-
manlike manner and in accordance with the requirements prescribed
by the Town Engineer.
Section 17. Severability: If any section, subsection,
phrase or,clause of this Ordinance is for any reason held to be
unconstitutional, such decision shall not effect the validity of the
remaining portions of this Ordinance. The Town Council hereby
declares that it would have passed this Ordinance and each section,
subsection, phrase and clause thereof irrespective of the fact that
anyone or more sections, subsections, clauses or phrases be declared
unconstitutional.
Section 18. Violations: Any person violating the provisions
of this Ordinance shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction
thereof shall be punishable by fine of not more that Five Hundred Dollars
.($500.00) or by imprisonment in the County Jail for a period not
exceeding six (6) months or, by both such fine and imprisonment.
The above and foregoing Ordinance was duly and regularly
introduced at a regular meeting of the Town Council of the Town of
Los Gatos held on the 1st day of February 1960, and was thereafter
at a regular meeting of theTown Council of the Town of Los Gatos
held on the 8th day of February 1960, duly and regularly passed
and adopted by the following vote:
AYES: COUNCILMEN: -I .1 ea~-
7
NOES: COUNCILMEN:
ABSENT : COUNC I LADEN :
ATTEST :
W F OS