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November 4, 1996 <br /> TO: Bob Hammitt, Maintenance Director <br /> FROM: Johnny R. Medlin, Maintenance Support Manager <br /> SUBJECT: Tree Removal Permit for LTD <br /> As requested this memo responds to your inquiry regarding the street tree removal mitigation <br /> billing which was recently submitted to Land Transit District (LTD) in the amount of <br /> $11,223.60. <br /> This street tree loss mitigation is the result of their request for a permit to remove street trees <br /> located on 10th, 11th, Olive and Willamette abutting the new LTD Site. The plans for the <br /> privately constructed improvements show eight street trees needing to be removed. Seven of the <br /> trees are Columnar Red Maples and one is a Schwedler Norway Maple. The combined <br /> appraised value of these trees is $11,898.60. The permit application fee is $125.00 which brings <br /> the pre- mitigation total to $12,023.60. <br /> A developer is strongly encouraged to mitigate tree loss and we grant mitigation credit based on <br /> what our costs would be to plant the replacement trees being proposed. Typically replacement <br /> trees are two inch in caliper which have an establishment cost of approximately $400 each. In <br /> this case two replacement street trees are being proposed which represent a credit value of $800. <br /> This lowers the net total owed to the city to $ 11,223.60. <br /> We only grant credit value for replacement trees planted in the public right of way because we <br /> are mitigating the loss of a street tree which is a city owned asset that has value. Since trees <br /> planted on the private property do not belong to the city they do not replace lost city value. In <br /> addition little regulatory protection is available for trees on developed private property and the <br /> developer can easily have them removed in the future. Further, it is the opinion of some that <br /> trees need to be planted within a development in addition to street trees, not in replacement of <br /> them. <br /> The authority basis of this billing is section 6.305 (3) of Eugene Code which was adopted by the <br /> City Council last August as a part of the Local Street Plan (LSP) ordinance package. In specific, <br /> this provision allows the city to make the granting of a street tree removal permit conditional on <br /> the permittee mitigating the loss to the community of this valuable city owned asset. This new <br /> section also establishes the methodology to be used for calculating value. <br /> 1 <br />