Critics of revisions to Chapel Hill’s existing tree protection ordinance say the changes might place great restrictions on cutting down trees and potentially harm existing and future businesses.
But those in favor of the revised ordinance see the new standards as important steps to protecting the area’s trees.
The Town Council will hold a public hearing at 7 p.m. tonight at the Town Hall to discuss the changes.
The current ordinance regulates the removal of trees on non-residential properties and on single and two-family lots where more than 5,000 square feet of tree coverage would be cleared, regardless of lot size.
Proposed revisions
n?Lots of more than half an acre would need a permit to cut down a tree 6 inches or larger in diameter. It would place additional restrictions on non-residential lots.
n?For a permit, the property would have to meet standards based on tree rarity and tree canopy coverage, meaning the percentage of land covered by the leaves or branches of trees.
n?Revisions to the ordinance have the potential to reduce carbon emissions and lower the “heat-island” effect caused by living in an urban area, it states.
Who it affects
About 58 percent of single-family and two-family residential lots in Chapel Hill would be exempt from the proposed tree canopy coverage standards because of their lot size.
These property owners could cut down any tree less than 36 inches in diameter without any restrictions, said Scott Radway, a local design and planning consultant and former member of the Chapel Hill Planning Board.
For the other 42 percent, an arborist would have to determine the canopy coverage before any cutting could be done. If there was not enough coverage, more trees would have to be planted to compensate, Radway said.
He said that the draft plan is not realistic for land owners.
For University Mall to meet the proposed requirements, they would have to add about 1,680 trees, he said. Each tree would take up 1.25 parking spaces, which would total 2,100 parking spaces. There are currently 1,700 parking spaces, Radway said.
The alternative would be to pay $1,000 for every required tree that wasn’t planted, about $1.7 million.
“It would appear to meet the tree ordinance, you’d have to remove all the parking spaces and some of the buildings,” Radway said.
Public debate
The town had already held two public information meetings.
Bryan Lowrance, an arborist for Bartlett Tree Experts in Raleigh, said the revisions are just a beginning step to bettering the care of the trees so they will thrive in the future.
“Generally, the ordinance is good to help people realize the importance of what the trees do for Chapel Hill,” he said.
The canopy coverage content is a realistic goal and is the most important part of the ordinance, Lowrance said.
Patricia Johnston, who owns 25 acres in the Kings Mill-Morgan Creek neighborhood, said she supports the revisions.
“We bought this property because we did like the fact that it was heavily wooded,” she said.
Radway said he supports more tree protection, but he does not support the ordinance as written.
“All non-single family properties are being lumped under the same umbrella without acknowledging that there is a difference between a two-acre lot downtown and University Mall,” he said.
Radway said the regulation is unenforceable and questioned how many property owners of lots larger than 20,000 square feet would actually go to town hall to obtain a permit to remove a tree.
“You need to stop it in its tracks or put it on hold,” he said. “We need to get the economic developer or town manager to look at the effects that will be had on the development.”
Contact the City Editor at citydesk@unc.edu.
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Thursday, May 2, 2024
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