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Part 89
89.000 MUNICIPAL TREES* Ord. No. 69 Adopted: November 9, 1988
---------- *Cross reference(s)--Nuisance and hazard abatement, Pt. 2. ----------
An ordinance to regulate and control the planting,
maintenance and removal of trees, stumps and branches within the
city.
THE CITY OF READING ORDAINS THAT:
Short title. The ordinance codified in this chapter shall be
known and cited as the municipal tree ordinance of the city.
Definitions. For the purpose of this chapter, the following
terms, phrases, words and their derivations shall have the
meaning given in this section. When not inconsistent with the
context, words used in the present tense include the future,
words in the plural include the singular, and words in the
singular include the plural. The word "shall" is mandatory and
not merely directory.
A. "City forestry chairman" is the designated official of
the city of Reading, lying within the county of
Hillsdale, state of Michigan, assigned to carry out the
enforcement of this chapter.
B. "Large trees" are designated as those attaining a
height of forty-five feet or more.
C. "Medium trees" are designated as those attaining a
height of thirty to forty-five feet.
D. "Municipality" is the city of Reading, lying within the
county of Hillsdale, state of Michigan.
E. "Park" includes all public parks having individual
names.
F. "Parkway" is that part of a street or highway, not
covered by sidewalk or other paving, lying between the
property line and that portion of the street or highway
usually used for vehicular traffic.
G. "Person" is any person, firm, partnership, association,
corporation, company or organization of any kind.
H. "Plants" includes all "non-woody" vegetation now or
hereafter growing on any public street, highway, alley,
or public place.
I. "Property line" means the outer edge of a street or
highway and does not pertain to the traveled pavement
surface in itself.
J. "Property owner" means the person owning such property
as shown by the records on file at the county register
of deeds office.
K. "Public places" includes all other grounds owned by the
city of Reading, lying within the county of Hillsdale,
state of Michigan, or under its control or supervision
whether owned, leased, or under contract of the city.
L. "Public trees" includes all trees now or thereafter
growing on any street or any public area where
otherwise indicated.
M. "Small trees" are designated as those attaining a
height of twenty to thirty feet.
N. "Street-highway" includes all land lying between the
so-called property lines on either side of all public
streets, roads, boulevards, alleys or parts thereof.
O. "Street or highway" means the entire width of every
public way or right-of-way when any part thereof is
open to the use of the public, as a matter of right,
for purposes of vehicular and pedestrian traffic.
P. "Trees and shrubs" includes all woody vegetation now or
hereafter growing on any public street, highway, alley
or public place.
89.001 Regulation generally.
Sec. 1. The city council shall have full power and authority
over all trees, plants and shrubs planted or hereafter planted in
the streets, parks and public places of the city. The maintenance
of such trees, plants and shrubs shall be subject to the
provisions of this chapter, and such rules and regulations as the
city council may from time to time hereafter adopt, and as it
deems necessary to properly control and regulate the planting,
maintenance, protection and removal of trees, plants and shrubs
on public areas of the city.
89.002 Permits generally.
Sec. 2.
A. It is unlawful for any person to perform or undertake,
or cause to be performed or undertaken, any work or
activity covered by and included within this chapter
without first filing an application for and procuring a
permit from the city forestry chairman or his
designated agent.
B. Every permit issued shall specifically describe the
location and nature of the work or other activity to be
performed under it and shall contain such other
information as may be required by such regulations as
may be hereafter adopted from time to time by the city
council.
C. Any permit issued pursuant to the provisions of this
chapter and in accordance with applicable regulations
adopted by the city council shall automatically become
null and void upon expiration of the permit period or
at any time the permit holder violates the provisions
of this chapter, the permit, or the regulations
applicable thereto.
D. No charge shall be made for the issuance of any permit
unless it is determined necessary by the city forestry
chairman, or such person as he may designate, to assign
an inspector to supervise the work or other activity to
be performed under the permit to be issued. In the
event an inspector is determined to be necessary, the
department shall determine the charge for such
inspection services on an actual cost basis, and such
actual cost shall be paid by the person seeking the
permit as a prerequisite to its issuance.
E. Notice of commencement and completion of work or other
activity authorized by the permit shall be made to the
city forestry chairman as stated on the permit issued.
89.003 Permit required--Planting.
Sec. 3.
A. No trees, plants or shrubs shall be planted in any of
the streets, highways, parks or other public areas in
the city unless and until the city forestry chairman
shall have first approved the kind, size and variety of
the same, designated the location thereof, and granted
a permit for the planting of same.
B. Any trees, plants or shrubs authorized for planting
within the triangle formed by the intersection of
right-of-way lines and extending for a distance of
twenty-five feet each way from the intersection on any
corner within the city shall not be permitted to grow
to a height of more than three feet above the surface
of the intersecting roadways.
C. The city forestry chairman shall have the authority to
plant trees, plants or shrubs in any public street,
highway, park or other public areas in the city which
he, in his sole discretion, deems adequate for his
purpose.
89.004 Permit required--Maintenance.
Sec. 4. No person shall hereafter move, spray, brace, trim,
do surgery work, or cut above or below ground any branch or root
therefrom or otherwise disturb any tree, plant or shrub in any
highway, park or public place of the city, nor cause such acts to
be done by others without first obtaining a written permit from
the city forestry chairman who shall issue the permit if in his
judgment the proposed work is necessary and the proposed method
of workmanship thereof is of a satisfactory nature. The person
receiving such permit shall abide by the specifications and
standards of practice in this chapter and on any regulation as
may be hereafter from time to time adopted by the city council,
and shall as a condition of such permit agree to hold the city
harmless from any and all liability which might result from the
work or activity authorized. In addition, the city forestry
chairman may require the person receiving such permit to provide
such insurance coverage and in such amounts as he deems necessary
to protect the interest of the city.
89.005 Conditional permit--Removal of tree or shrub.
Sec. 5. As a condition to any permit issued for the removal
of any tree or shrub, the city forestry chairman may require that
the permit holder plant, at his sole expense, a tree or shrub
designated by the city forestry chairman in place of the one
removed at the removal site or at any alternate site located in a
public area immediately adjoining the permit holder's property.
89.006 Loss of public trees--Value recovery.
Sec. 6.
A. Whenever the city forestry chairman shall determine
that a tree in any street, park or public place has
been impaired, damaged, broken, severed, destroyed or
removed in a manner which will cause immediate or
future removal of the tree, which is deemed premature
and untimely based on the condition, vigor, location,
kind and age of the trees, and the city forestry
chairman shall have knowledge of the person causing the
damage, then the city forestry chairman shall assess
against the responsible person the value of the tree as
determined by use of the Michigan Forestry and Parks
Association Shade Tree Evaluation Chart.
B. This shall not construe that the value received by the
city shall be less than the cost of the removal of the
damaged tree and replacement of a comparable tree as
determined by the city forestry chairman of not less
than three-inch trunk diameter measured at a height of
six inches above the ground, nor shall the city
forestry chairman be restricted in his choice of the
replacement planting site.
C. It shall be the duty of the police department having
knowledge of such damage or persons causing damage to
immediately report same to the city forestry chairman
for investigation.
D. It shall be the duty of the city forestry chairman to
notify the city manager and city attorney of any of the
tree damage which shall dictate value recovery to the
city.
E. The full amount of the value recovered for the damaged
tree shall be conveyed to the city forestry chairman
for future tree planting purposes notwithstanding the
deduction of the removal cost of the damaged tree and
replacement of the tree.
F. The city forestry chairman shall determine the time of
the removal of the damaged tree, but it shall not be
required that all the damaged trees must be immediately
removed if found to be in safe condition in order for
value recovery to take place.
89.007 Public nuisance.
Sec. 7.
A. Any tree or shrub or parts thereof growing upon private
property but overhanging or interfering with the use of
any street, park, public improvement or public place of
the city that in the opinion of the city forestry
chairman endangers the life, health, safety or property
of the public shall be declared a public nuisance.
B. Any tree growing on private property within the city
afflicted with any dangerous and infectious insect
infestation or tree disease shall be declared a public
nuisance.
C. Any such trees located in streets, parks or public
places shall be removed at city expense and under the
direction of the city forestry chairman.
D. Whenever any public nuisance exists, contrary to the
provisions of the sections in this chapter, the city
forestry chairman or his authorized agent shall given
written notice to the owner or his agent or the
occupant of the property, describing the tree, its
location and the nature of the nuisance, and ordering
the owner, agent or occupant to take such measures as
may be reasonably necessary to correct or cease such
nuisance, specifying the measures required to be taken.
E. It is unlawful for any person to permit, cause or
suffer the existence of a public nuisance from and
after thirty days following the date of the notice
provided for.
F. In any case notice given shall not be complied with,
the city forestry chairman is authorized and empowered
to order the removal or abatement of the public
nuisance and, upon failure of the property owner to
comply with such order in accordance with its terms,
shall have the authority to make application to any
court of competent jurisdiction for an order requiring
the property owner and/or occupant thereof to permit
the city forestry chairman or those designated by him
to enter upon such private property for the purpose of
removing or abating the public nuisance, and further
requiring such property owner and/or occupant to cease
and desist from interfering with such removal or
abatement.
G. Any work contracted by the city forestry chairman for
the removal or abatement of public nuisances shall be
submitted for bids and approved by the city council.
H. Upon completion of the abatement or removal of the
public nuisance, the city forestry chairman shall
certify to the cost of the removal of the public
nuisance. The owner or other persons to whom the notice
was directed shall be notified by mail of the removal
or abatement, the cost incurred for such work, and a
statement that the cost incurred will be assessed
against the owner's property at a regular meeting of
council to be held not sooner than thirty days after
the date of notice.
I. It shall be the duty of the owner of the property or
other person to whom notice was directed to pay the
cost of such removal within thirty days after the date
of mailing of the notice of completion, and in case of
his failure to do so, the city shall have the right to
make assessment by ordinance against any property for
the purpose of collection in the same manner as general
taxes are collected.
Effective date. The effective date of this ordinance shall be November 21, 1988.
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