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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda 06_Tree Removal Guide final 180 Market Street South Burlington, VT 05403 tel 802.846.4106 fax 802.846.4101 www.southburlingtonvt.gov Long Drive Tree Preservation Handbook User Guide Created by the South Burlington Planning & Zoning Department on November 7, 2022 This guide applies to the Tree Preservation Handbook for the Long Drive Subdivision at Vermont National Country Club, prepared on September 9, 2010, and that Handbook’s associated maps, plans, and supplemental documents. This guide is informed by the regulatory language found within the aforementioned Tree Preservation Handbook; the Tree Inventory Overall Site Plan for application SD-21-15, prepared on September 30, 2020, by Civil Engineering Associates and TreeWorks, Inc; and the Overall Site Plan prepared on September 3, 2003, by Civil Engineering Associates, Michael Lawrence Associates, and Warren Spinner. An ‘Existing Tree To Remain’ is a tree numbered and indicated as an ‘Existing Tree To Remain’ on the Tree Inventory Overall Site Plan for application SD-21-15, prepared on September 30, 2020, by Civil Engineering Associates and TreeWorks, Inc. The ‘Tree Protection Zone’ is an area of shrubs and trees to remain undisturbed, delineated on the Tree Inventory Overall Site Plan for application SD-21-15, prepared on September 30, 2020, by Civil Engineering Associates and TreeWorks, Inc. An ‘original building footprint’ is one of the ten building footprints indicated on the Overall Site Plan prepared on September 3, 2003, by Civil Engineering Associates, Michael Lawrence Associates, and Warren Spinner. These three features are combined onto one map, which can be found on page five of this PDF. This map was prepared by Jack Milbank of Civil Engineering Associates on September 30, 2022, and will serve as the primary reference map for building footprints, Tree Protection Zone limits, and ‘Existing Trees to Remain’ from this time onwards. This map, which is used as reference for examples provided in this guide, utilizes the following legend: the hatched area outlined in green is the Tree Preservation Zone, the numbered + symbols are the ‘Existing Trees to Remain’, the numbered gray shapes are the original building footprints, and the blue shaded areas are the buffer zones applicable to each example. This guide was created in response to ambiguity surrounding the provision in the Tree Preservation Plan that exempts trees within 20 feet of a proposed building footprint from the management requirements of the Tree Preservation Plan, and provides a definitive guide to interpreting this provision. 2 The 20-foot buffer zone from the edge of an original building footprint supersedes the Tree Protection Zone. (i.e., you may clear any areas where the 20-foot buffer zone of the original building footprints shown on the Overall Site Plan prepared on September 3, 2003, by C.E.A., Michael Lawrence Associates, and Warren Spinner overlaps with the Tree Protection Zone, if the building is built on the originally proposed footprint) The Tree Protection Zone supersedes the 20-foot buffer zone from the edge of any proposed building footprint that exceeds or alters the size of an original building footprint. (i.e., the parts of a building footprint that extend beyond the buffered area granted by the original building footprint are not granted any additional buffering. Any parts of the original building footprint buffer that are not within 20 feet of the edge of an altered or expanded building footprint lose their buffer status, shrinking the total buffer area. If the Tree Protection Zone is within 20 feet of a part of a building footprint that has been altered or expanded to exceed the buffer zone granted by the original building footprint, those areas of the Tree Protection Zone may not be cleared except as specifically provided for in the Handbook) In this example, the 20-foot buffer zone from this original building footprint is shown in blue. Everything within that buffer may be cleared if the building (or applicable side) is constructed exactly on the original footprint, including the overlapping areas of the Tree Protection Zone and the Trees To Be Retained. In this example, the proposed building footprint is different from the original building footprint, including an addition on the southwest side and a shrinking of the northeast part of the house. Because the southwestern addition does not conflict with the Tree Preservation Zone or any property line setbacks, it may be constructed. However, because it is not part of the original building footprint, it does not get a 20-foot buffer. The removal of the northeastern part of the original building footprint decreases the size of the buffer, since clearing in the Tree Protection Zone is only permissible within 20 feet of the edge of the proposed building footprint. 3 An alternate explanation of buffer zones: The originally granted 20-foot buffer zone applies to new construction only at those points where the original building footprint and the proposed building footprint are exactly the same. If the proposed building footprint is smaller than the original building footprint, the 20-foot buffer recedes in conjunction with the proposed footprint, and if the proposed building footprint is larger than the original building footprint, the 20-foot buffer does not grow in accordance with the proposed footprint. Most simply put, when comparing the originally granted 20-foot buffer with a 20-foot buffer from the footprint of proposed building, only the areas of overlap may be cleared. Areas of the Tree Preservation Zone that are covered by the original 20-foot buffer but are not within 20 feet of the proposed building footprint may not be cleared. Areas of the Tree Preservation Zone that were not covered by the original 20-foot buffer but are within 20 feet of a proposed building may not be cleared either. All areas on a subject lot that do not fall within the Tree Preservation Zone may be cleared, except for Trees To Be Retained. The 20-foot buffer zone from the edge of an original building footprint supersedes the ‘Tree To Be Retained’ designation. (i.e., you may clear any ‘Tree To Be Retained’ from within the 20-foot buffer zone of the original building footprint) In this example, tree #227 is designated as a ‘Tree To Be Retained’ but is not within the Tree Protection Zone. Tree #228 is also designated as a ‘Tree To Be Retained’ and is within the Tree Protection Zone. Both trees are within the 20-foot buffer of the original building footprint. As such, both trees may be cleared. 4 The ‘Tree To Be Retained’ designation supersedes any use or structure other than the original building footprint and its associated 20-foot buffer. (i.e., you may not clear any ‘Tree To Be Retained’, even those outside of the Tree Protection Zone, unless it is within the 20-foot buffer zone associated with the original building footprint) Tree Management within the Tree Protection Zone: The Tree Preservation Handbook for Long Drive Subdivision at Vermont National Country Club is a comprehensive document, finalized on September 9, 2010, that enumerates the forest management requirements for the Tree Preservation Plan on. This Tree Preservation Handbook discusses the permissible and impermissible management techniques with respect to the trees that are designated to be protected as part the Tree Preservation Plan, and includes the following clause: “There are certain trees that are exempt from the management requirements of the Tree Preservation Plan including: trees listed as invasive species, trees that pose an immediate danger due to structural integrity and potential impacts to a home, trees that are dead, trees that are diseased in a manner that threatens their continued viability, and trees that are within 20 feet of a proposed building footprint.” While the Tree Preservation Handbook continues to be the preeminent document regarding the restrictions and applicability of the Tree Preservation Plan, this user guide serves to interpret the above-referenced clause with respect to its final qualification. In this example, the proposed building footprint does not extend as far to the east as the original building footprint, so the 20-foot buffer has been adjusted accordingly. This change leaves tree #227 outside of the 20-foot buffer, but also outside of the Tree Protection Zone. As such, this tree, designated as a ‘Tree To Be Retained’, must be retained. The homeowners may landscape their yard around the tree as they see fit but they may not damage the tree or its root system. Tree #228 must also be retained.