Committee recommends City Council approve Urban Forest Plan after debate over ordinance timing

The Community Development Committee voted to recommend city council approval of the city's Urban Forest Plan after a lengthy presentation and debate over prioritizing a tree-preservation ordinance.

"This plan shall provide guidance to the city for the stewardship and expansion of a thriving urban forest that sustains and enhances our community's quality of life," a staff presenter read from the plan's mission statement during the meeting. Legacy of Greenery Chair Kaye Brown and City Forester Laura Peterson highlighted the plan's history, public engagement (more than 1,000 survey responses) and the city's ash-tree mitigation work.

Committee members repeatedly pressed staff on timeline and capacity. Legacy of Greenery and Councilor (speaker 11) urged moving the recommendation to strengthen the tree-preservation ordinance from the plan's medium term into the short term, arguing local canopy losses and recent development make quicker action essential. Parks leadership and staff cautioned that cross-departmental capacity and other concurrent planning efforts limit how many items can be advanced simultaneously.

An amendment offered to accelerate the tree-preservation work failed on a voice vote; the committee then approved the original motion recommending the Urban Forest Plan to the city council on a unanimous voice vote.

Staff emphasized the plan contains a mix of short-, mid- and long-term tasks and said the governing body's adoption will be followed by internal prioritization and coordination across public works, planning, parks and law to sequence implementation.