NEW BUSINESS  7.

COMMITTEE MEMORANDUM

HISTORY:

At the April 10^th, 2019 Commission meeting, Commissioner John Elizabeth Aleman and Commissioner Joy Malakoff co-sponsored a referral to the Finance and Citywide Projects Committee (FCWPC) to discuss the implementation of a heritage tree designation, awareness campaign, and incentive program.

Prior to 2015, the city did not have a tree preservation and protection ordinance. Therefore, all tree work in Miami Beach was required to adhere to requirements within county code, including mitigation for canopy loss which was not guaranteed to occur within city limits. In June 2015, the city adopted the Tree Preservation and Protection Ordinance (Section 46, Division 2 of the City Code) as a means of instilling a more stringent and more controlled approach to tree preservation and protection citywide. The ordinance established a mitigation requirement for unavoidable tree removals that dictates lost canopy must be replaced within close proximity of the removal location to prevent a net loss of canopy within the affected neighborhood. In addition, the city created the tree trust fund to ensure that mitigation dollars are used to enhance the city’s urban forest.

The ordinance included language related to heritage tree designation to give special recognition to those trees or grouping of trees that have a unique or intrinsic value to the community. Trees designated as heritage trees have the highest level of protection. Trees of any species may be designated as heritage trees, provided they meet one of the following required criteria established in Section 46-63 of the city code:

a)    It is a historic tree or grouping of trees, of notable historical interest and value to the City of Miami Beach because of location or historical association with the community.

b)    It is a tree or grouping of trees of high value to the community because of species, size, age, location, distinctive form, exceptional characteristics, ecological value, aesthetic value or other relevant criteria.

c)    It is a champion tree or grouping of trees, identified by the State of Florida Division of Forestry as being the largest of its species within the state or by the American Forestry Association as being the largest of its species in the United States or the world.

ANALYSIS:

To date neither the city nor private property owners have pursued a heritage tree designation for any trees. There is a growing interest in designating unique trees on city property, including the large banyan trees at the center of the Former Par 3 property. The city only has an inventory of trees on public property. As such, it is difficult to accurately estimate the number of trees within private properties that have a potential of meeting this designation. City staff’s best estimate is that there are approximately 100-200 trees citywide that may qualify as heritage trees. This estimate is based on satellite imagery and knowledge of private trees through field visits and plan review during new development and redevelopment projects.

Potential ideas for promoting and incentivizing private properties to designate trees as heritage trees include the following: 

·         Creating an annual maintenance allowance for private property owners that designate heritage trees on their property. The annual pruning and maintenance of a large specimen tree can range from $600.00 to $1,000.00 per tree. Providing an annual maintenance allowance will help reduce the maintenance cost for private property owners.  

·         Create a program that highlights properties that have a designated tree. This can be accomplished through including a layer on the GIS tree inventory on the city’s website. Also, a tour could be added to the MB Rising Above mobile app highlighting heritage trees.

·         There is a $272 heritage tree review and inspection application fee. This fee could be waived.

·         To designate a prohibited species, such as a banyan tree, as a heritage tree the property is required to obtain a variance from Miami Dade County. Each variance request costs $268. The city could help off-set this fee.

·         Developing a specialized plaque that private properties can install on their property to recognize the heritage tree. Depending on the size and design it is estimated that the cost of the plague would range from $150 to $300 per tree.

·         Installing a special tree plaque at City Hall listing all heritage trees and commemorative trees within the city. The cost of this initiative is estimated at $1,000 to $3,000.

The Tree Trust Fund has generated the following revenue since FY16 with current fund balance at $403,500 that may be used to offset any costs incurred.

To offset any cost incurred by the new program, it should be noted that the fund balance is currently being allocated to fund Urban Forestry Program implementation, additional tree planting events, Commemorative Tree Program implementation, and additional tree preservation and education efforts. 

CONCLUSION:

The following is presented to the members of the Finance and Citywide Project Committee for discussion.