CC RES 1989-119RESOLUTION NO. 89 - 9
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES ADOPTING
REGULATIONS TO IMPLEMENT THE RANCHO PALOS
VERDES COUNCIL OF HOMEOWNERS ASSOCIATIONS
AND CITY COUNCIL COOPERATIVE VIEW
PRESERVATION AND RESTORATION ORDINANCE BY
AMENDING THE POLICY FOR STREET TREE
PRUNING AND REMOVAL.
WHEREAS, on November 7, 1989, the People of the
City of Rancho Palos Verdes approved the "Rancho Palos Verdes
Council of Homeowners Associations and City Council
Cooperative View Preservation and Restoration Ordinance"
( "Proposition M") with an effective date of November 17,
1989; and,
WHEREAS, Section 5 of Proposition M empowers the
City Council to adopt procedures and rules or regulations
which may be necessary for its implementation; and,
WHEREAS, Rancho Palos Verdes Municipal Code section
17.02.040 C.2.(e) as set forth in Section 2 of Proposition M
provides that, to the extent legally permissible, trees or
foliage on property owned by the City or any other
governmental entity, except the Miraleste Recreation & Park
District, shall be subject to view restoration control by way
of trimming or removal pursuant to the terms of a view
restoration notice and permit; and,
WHEREAS, Proposition M further requires a view
restoration permit applicant to file with the application
proof that he or she has consulted, or attempted to consult,
the property owner whose foliage is in question; and
WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that it is
desirable to assist applicants for view restoration permits
which involve foliage in a City easement or on City property
( "City trees ") by requiring the City to take action in
response to early neighborhood consultation efforts by the
applicant; and
WHEREAS, it is the City Council's intent to
minimize the expense and burden upon the public which would
be caused by unnecessary view restoration permit applications
by attempting to satisfy City tree view restoration requests
at the early neighborhood consultation stage; and
WHEREAS, on November 1, 1988, the City Council
adopted a policy permitting applications to the City for the
removal of view - impairing City street trees, entitled a
"Policy for Street Tree Pruning and Removal to Protect Views
in Areas of the City not subject to the Palos Verdes Homes
Association Covenants, Conditions and Restrictions" ( "Street
Tree Policy "); and,
WHEREAS, the City Council has determined that it is
necessary and desirable to amend the Street Tree Policy in
order to assure consistency with Proposition M, in order to
re -enact the Street Tree Policy as a city -wide supplemental
regulation necessary for the implementation of Proposition M,
and in order to implement the Council's determination that
the City should take action as to City trees in response to
early neighborhood consultation efforts by view restoration
permit applicants;
NOW, THEREFORE, THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
RANCHO PALOS VERDES DOES HEREBY FIND, DETERMINE AND RESOLVE
AS FOLLOWS:
Section 1. The Street Tree Policy, as amended and
set forth in this Resolution, is both necessary to the
implementation of, and consistent with, Proposition M.
Section 2. These regulations are intended to
supplement the provisions of Proposition M. and they shall be
interpreted and applied in a manner consistent with
Proposition M.
Section 3. The following regulations are hereby
adopted as set forth in the paragraphs below:
11 Any person (hereafter the "Applicant ")
desiring the City to remove or trim trees or foliage located
in a City easement or on City property (hereafter "tree(s) ")
to protect or restore a view in accordance with Municipal
Code section 17.02.040 C.2. shall first file an application
pursuant to these regulations with the Environmental Services
Department. Such application shall, with respect to the
City, initiate consultation and early neighborhood
consultation within the meaning of Municipal Code sections
17.02.040 C.1.(a), C.1.(d)(1), C.2.(a) and C.2.(c)(1). No
person may file a view restoration permit application
pursuant to Municipal Code section 17.02.040 C.2.(a) with
respect to City trees except upon completion of the process
set forth in these regulations and as specified below in
paragraph 8;
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2. The Director or the Director's designee
(hereafter "Director ") will conduct an investigation of the
Applicant's property to determine whether the tree(s) is(are)
impairing a view from any portion of the Applicant's property
other than within the required setbacks. If the Director
determines that a view, as defined in Municipal Code section
17.02.040 A.15., exists and the tree(s) is(are) impairing
that view, the Director shall determine whether the tree(s)
must be removed to restore the view or whether trimming will
be sufficient to restore the view. For property located
within the boundaries of the Miraleste Recreation & Park
District, in reaching his or her determination the Director
shall strike a reasonable balance between meeting the
purposes of Municipal Code section 17.02.040 set forth in
Section 1 of the Ordinance approved by the voters on November
7, 1989, and preserving the historical development of the
Miraleste Recreation & Park District with large numbers of
trees;
3. If the Director determines a defined view
exists and the tree(s) impairs that view, and if the
Applicant provides his or her written agreement that the
proposed trimming or removal is acceptable in lieu of a view
restoration notice or permit, the Director shall send a
Notice of Intention to remove or trim the tree(s) to the
owners of the property adjacent to the tree(s). The Notice
shall specify that the Director will cause the tree(s) to be
removed or trimmed, as the case may be, within thirty (30)
days;
4. The Notice from the Director shall also inform
the owners of the property adjacent to the tree(s) a) that
the owners may request that a new tree(s) be replanted, and
b) which varieties of tree(s) are acceptable for replanting.
No tree(s) will be replanted unless the owners adjacent to
the tree(s) makes such a request. The list of acceptable
trees will be as designated for the area to assure that the
future tree(s) will not impair the view. The owners of the
property adjacent to the'tree(s) will be permitted to select
the tree(s) to be replanted from the approved list. A
maximum of two (2) trees per lot frontage, or a maximum of
three (3) trees on a corner lot, shall be allowed;
5. The Applicant shall pay all costs of trimming
or removal and replacement of the tree(s);
6. The Applicant must file with the City a
covenant to run with the land providing that the Applicant
will trim and remove foliage on the Applicant's property in
order to protect the views of other persons in a manner
consistent with the provisions of section 17.02.040. The
covenant shall be in a form approved by the City Attorney.
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No application will be processed without the filing of the
required covenant. The covenant will be returned to the
Applicant if the Director renders a decision that the tree(s)
will not be removed or trimmed. The covenant will be
accepted and recorded if the Director renders a decision that
the tree(s) will be removed or trimmed; and,
7. If the Director renders a decision that the
tree(s) will be removed or trimmed, the City shall enter into
an agreement with the Applicant binding the City to maintain
the tree(s) which have been removed or trimmed so as to
prevent future view impairment by such tree(s). The
agreement will require the City to undertake such maintenance
on at least an annual basis. The City Attorney shall prepare
a standard form agreement for use by the City and Applicant.
8. If the Director renders a decision that the
tree(s) will not be trimmed or removed, or if the Applicant
does not agree that the proposed trimming or removal is
acceptable in lieu of a view restoration notice or permit,
the Applicant will, for the purposes of Municipal Code
section 17.02.040 C.2.(a) and C.2.(c)(1), be deemed to have
complied with the early neighborhood consultation process and
to have shown proof of cooperation on his /her part to resolve
conflicts. The Applicant may thereafter seek a view
restoration permit pursuant to Municipal Code section
17.02.040 C.2. upon payment of the required application fee.
Section 4. The City Clerk is directed to prepare a
system for the filing and codification of procedures and
rules or regulations adopted pursuant to the authority
granted under Proposition M. The City Clerk is further
authorized and directed to maintain a legislative history of
the City Council's actions adopting or rejecting procedures
and rules or regulations. The City Clerk is authorized to
number, renumber, arrange or index the procedures and rules
or regulations adopted pursuant to the authority granted
under Proposition M in any manner deemed necessary for the
convenient maintenance of such matters.
Section 5. The City Council expressly disclaims any
intention to create, and no person shall acquire, any
property right or interest through the adoption, enforcement,
amendment, or repeal of these regulations.
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APPROVED and ADOPTED this 19th day of December, 1989.
ATTEST:
c- ty -cierx
STATE OF CALIFORNIA
COUNTY OF LOS ANGELES
CITY OF RANCHO PALOS VERDES
)5s
f.
ayor
I, JO PURCELL, City Clerk of the City Council of the
City of Rancho Palos Verdes, hereby certify that the above
Resolution No. 89-1-J..9 was duly and regularly passed and
adopted by the said City Council at a regular meeting thereof
held on the 19th day of December, 1989. Je,
r CITY CLERK
CITY t /RANCHO PALOS VERDES
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RESOL. 89 -119