Neighborhoods Environment Housing News
City of Eau Claire’s Proposed Tree Ordinance, Explained
proposed tree mitigation ordinance part of Century Code Update project draws significant attention and contention, public will be able to comment again during Aug. 4 Planning Commission meeting
Evelyn Nelson, photos by Andrea Paulseth |
The Eau Claire City Council is currently addressing three Century Code updates with a strong emphasis on affordability, diversity, and more clearly defined zoning structures. A significant portion of this week's council agenda has been dedicated to proposed tree mitigation standards, colloquially dubbed "the tree ordinance."
The proposed tree ordinance aims to preserve high-value trees in residential lots and those with a diameter of 12 inches or greater. Residents would be further incentivized to replace and replant 30% of the total diameter of those trees, in order to avoid a suggested tree removal fee of $400 per tree.
Simply put: If choosing to remove a high-value tree of a certain size from your property – if the property is 10,000 square feet or more — the proposed ordinance states you must either a) replant one tree for every tree you remove on the property, or b) pay a fee in the place of each tree removed, which the city's forestry department will use to replant a tree(s) elsewhere. (The ordinance would apply whether you are a homeowner, developer, property manager, etc.)
Eau Claire County residents may be curious: what constitutes a “high-value tree,” and is there one on my property? A recommendation with details on the ordinance — and relevant definitions — was shared on June 24 by Juli Beth Hinds of Birchline Planning LLC, a consulting firm collaborating with the City of Eau Claire on the Century Code update project.
"The updates that are in Century Code are focused on the large-scale tree clearing that we've seen in new developments over the past 10 to 15 years, and how to think about mitigating the loss of tree canopy."
ANDREW WERTHMANN
CITY COUNCIL VICE PRESIDENT
High-value trees – that also have a diameter at breast height (DBH) of 12 inches or greater – will be those deemed significant by City Forester Matt Staudenmaier. Eau Claire's high-value tree species' (a list yet to be determined by Staudenmaier) are crucial for the city's urban forests and its dwindling canopy cover, City Council Vice President Andrew Werthmann said.
While debate continues regarding the focus of the Century Code’s tree mitigation amendments, Werthmann believes residential homeowners are not the only ones subject to tree preservation initiatives in the county.
“The updates that are in Century Code are focused on the large-scale tree clearing that we've seen in new developments over the past 10 to 15 years, and how to think about mitigating the loss of tree canopy,” Werthmann said.
Establishing a value per tree for removal or replanting is a common and well-accepted practice, the recommendation states. Birchline Planning LLC cites several examples of mitigation programs across the state of Wisconsin and broader Midwest, which charge either a fee per tree to be planted (or per “caliper inch” as mitigation solutions).
At the Monday, July 21 City Council meeting, city Planning Manager Ned Noel introduced some Century Code updates to council. Following his introduction, Jackie Berg, a consultant with Houseal Lavigne on the Century Code project, highlighted the ongoing updates on tree mitigation for existing plots of land across the city.
Berg said Birchline Planning LLC has recommended a reduction in fees per inch from $400 to $200. This "fee-in-lieu" would be a final option for residents and council to consider, after exploring replacement and replanting options outlined in the Century Code.
The fee would then be put into a fund the city forester can utilize to replant trees elsewhere, though the location of where those trees would need to be planted — in proximity to the original property a tree was removed from — is undetermined.
The $200 fee would align more closely to those in other communities stated, as opposed to the original proposed fee of $400, Berg noted. The final fee-in-lieu will not be decided by City Council until late September.
The original municipalities used as the basis for fee recommendation include Wisconsin cities such as Verona, Mequon, town of Franklin, and others across the country.
A tree mitigation fees table included in the Birchline Planning LLC recommendation shows Mequon has set a $150 replacement fee per tree removed, with an alternative $75 fee per caliper inch. Comparatively, the town of Franklin has a $400 fee per tree, with a $200 fee per caliper inch replaced.
The fee of $400 per tree replacement was also informed by a range of tree costs found in the Green Infrastructure Costs and Incentives in Metropolitan Milwaukee study — conducted in 2019 on behalf of the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.
After the Century Code project's mission and vision were reintroduced, along with a breakdown of the project's three goals — improving housing affordability and availability, enhancing community character and integrating sustainability — the July 21 council meeting was opened for a public comment period.
"We are just asking for you to work with us – to come to a middle ground on tree preservation. I want to make sure that we have a good balance of tree preservation, as well as supporting what we need for future housing affordability."
CHRISTINA THRUN
executive officer of the chippewa valley homebuilders association
Steve Betchkal, a videojournalist and member of the city's Sustainability Advisory Committee in favor of the tree mitigation ordinance, believes these decisions within the Century Code update project will have far-reaching implications.
He stated that council members — considering public comment and consultant recommendations — have an opportunity to make history and protect Eau Claire's environmental future.
“The tree protection language as written is generous, well-researched, empathetic, pragmatic, wise, far-sighted, embracing, and historic,” Betchkal said. “For more than two years, we have worked together to make it so.”
Christina Thrun, the executive officer for the Chippewa Valley Home Builders Association (CVHBA), said she understands the desire to protect trees across the city. On behalf of CVHBA, she believes the proposed ordinance is cost prohibitive to current residents and on future homeowners.
“We are just asking for you to work with us — to come to a middle ground on tree preservation,” Thrun said at the council meeting. “I want to make sure that we have a good balance of tree preservation, as well as supporting what we need for future housing affordability.”
Monday’s City Council agenda and public comment period was followed by a second agenda and meeting on Tuesday, July 22, to vote on those proposed amendments to the Century Code project.
City Council members Jessica Schoen and Charlie Johnson proposed a four-item amendment package aiming to simplify the Tree Preservation and Canopy Enhancement section of the Century Code update.
“I believe in the intent of trying to preserve trees as much as we possibly can. But, I don't believe that the city forestry department would be able to adequately police or permit people to do this in any kind of meaningful way.”
Matt Staudenmaier
CITY FORESTER
Those amendments included exemption parameters for where trees are removed, increasing the diameter requirements from 12 to 14 inches at DBH, and more.
“These amendments struck a thoughtful balance between sustainability goals and what we all know is the urgent need for more affordable housing,” Schoen stated during the meeting.
The four-item amendment package was voted on by council – item by item – with additional related amendments later posed by council members Emily Anderson, Joshua Miller, Andrew Werthmann, and Aaron Brewster.
The first amendment, which failed to pass, would have removed the 10,000-square-foot lot size limit from tree preservation standards. This would have allowed more single-family and smaller multi-family homes to be exempt.
Eau Claire’s current zoning codes indicate single-family units are restricted to parameters of 8,000 square feet. Consultants working on the Century Code update proposed increasing the exemption threshold to 10,000 square feet, to include more properties that could also be exempt from the proposed tree ordinance.
Residents can contact the engineering division to learn more about their specific lot size and how the ordinance may apply to them, Noel said.
The second amendment, which passed, allows select affordable housing projects to be exempt from the tree ordinance. Projects will qualify for exemption if 25% of the units are affordable — with rental pricing at or below 60% of the Eau Claire County’s median income — and are deed-restricted for 30 years.
The third amendment, which passed, increased the threshold for projects that qualify for streamlined approval. Originally, any project looking to cut down five or more high-value trees would not qualify for streamlined approval. This amendment increased the number to 10 high-value trees, allowing more flexibility for collaboration between developers and the city.
The fourth tree-related amendment, which failed, would have increased the diameter at breast height (DBH) threshold for high-value trees from 12 inches to 14 inches. This amendment was suggested in order to deter stringent policies that could unintentionally incentivize developers to build in areas that have no tree protections at all.
The fifth amendment — proposed by Anderson and Miller near the end of the July 22 meeting — which passed, would exempt residential properties with two or fewer dwelling units from the tree ordinance. This amendment was suggested based on the premise that Eau Claire’s three- and four-dwelling units are frequently owned by landlords and rented to tenants. These landlords possess a different financial capacity to mitigate tree loss compared to single-family units, the council members stated.
A sixth amendment — proposed by Vice President Werthmann and councilman Brewster — which failed, would have required existing residential properties with two or fewer dwelling units that obtain permits for building, land disturbance, or on-site development, to comply with the tree ordinance standards.
Following the two City Council meetings this week, all passed amendments of the Century Code will go to the Plan Commission for review and recommendation.
At 6pm on Aug. 4, the Plan Commission will hold an open-to-the-public hearing in City Hall (203 S. Farwell St., Eau Claire) to determine whether or not the tree-related amendments will be voted on and potentially adopted, Noel said.
At that meeting, community members will once again have the opportunity to share their concerns and feedback on the passed amendments, Werthmann added.
During the July 22 meeting, while amendments were being passed, Brewster asked Staudenmaier about the forestry department's ability to enforce the proposed mitigation measures.
Staudenmaier noted the language of the ordinance will be difficult to enforce, especially with the level of staffing his department currently has (according to the city's website, the forestry division is a four-person team).
“I believe in the intent of trying to preserve trees as much as we possibly can,” Staudenmaier said. “But, I don't believe that the city forestry department would be able to adequately police or permit people to do this in any kind of meaningful way.”
The outcomes from the Aug. 4 Plan Commission will be brought to the next city council meetings on Aug. 11 and 12, where council members will vote once again on the proposed ordinance amendments, or suggest new amendments to bring back to the Plan Commission.
Recordings of the July 21 and 22 City Council meetings can be found on the City of Eau Claire meetings website, under "past meetings." For information on the Century Code Update’s basis for tree mitigation, visit their “documents” webpage online.
