10.135 Alternative Methods of Compliance

(a) If the building official determines that, due to inhospitable soil conditions or inadequate space, it would be impracticable or imprudent for the responsible party to plant a replacement tree on the lot where the protected tree was removed or seriously injured (the "tree removal property"), the responsible party shall comply with one or more of the following requirements:

(1) Donate the replacement tree to the city's park and recreation department. If the director of the park and recreation department does not accept the tree, the responsible party must comply with one or more of the other alternative methods of compliance listed below.

(2) Plant the replacement tree on other property in the city that is within one mile of the tree removal property, as long as the responsible party obtains the written approval of the building official for:

(A) a site plan indicating the location of the tree to be removed or seriously injured, the address of the property where the replacement tree will be planted, and a site plan indicating the location of the replacement tree; and

(B) a written agreement between the owner of the property where the replacement tree will be planted and the responsible party, to assume mutual responsibility for the replacement tree under this article.

(3) Make a payment into a special city account, to be known as the Reforestation Fund, in accordance with Subsection (c).

(4) Grant a conservation easement to the city in accordance with Subsection (d) and the following paragraphs:

(A) The conservation easement area must contain protected trees with a combined caliper equal to or exceeding the caliper for which replacement tree credit is being requested.

(B) If the conservation easement area is 25 percent or less than the area of the tree removal property, the responsible party will get credit for trees in the conservation easement area, on an inch for inch basis, up to a maximum of 50 percent of the total caliper of replacement trees required.

(C) If the conservation easement area is more than 25 percent and less than 50 percent of the area of the tree removal property; the responsible party will get credit for trees in the conservation easement area, on an inch for inch basis, up to a maximum of 65 percent of the total caliper of replacement trees required.

(D) If the conservation easement area is 50 percent or more of the area of the tree removal property, the responsible party will get credit for trees in the conservation easement area, on an inch for inch basis, up to a maximum of 80 percent of the total caliper of replacement trees required.

The replacement trees that cannot be planted on the tree removal property, and for which credit cannot be given through a conservation easement under this paragraph, must be replaced by other methods set forth in this subsection, such that the replacement trees equal in total caliper the total caliper of the trees removed or seriously injured.

Revise to allow for the donation of wooded land to the city’s Park and Recreation department, contingent on the approval of the department and the building official.
Revise to allow for the development of the removal property according to the Quality Tree Conservation and Sustainable Development Incentives.

(b) Use of other property for tree replacement. A responsible party who obtains permission to plant the replacement tree on other tree replacement property in the city shall ensure that the planting and maintenance of the tree on the other tree replacement property complies with the requirements of this article. The building official shall maintain a list of publicly or privately owned properties for which replacement trees are sought by groups such as homeowner's associations or school districts.

(1) The director of development services shall administer the reforestation fund to purchase trees to plant on public property or to acquire conservation easements or wooded property.

(2) The amount of the payment required is calculated by using the formula for appraising the value of a tree, as derived from the most recent edition of the Guide for Establishing Values of Trees and Other Plants published by the Council of Tree & Landscape Appraisers, unless another publication is designated by the building official. If more than one tree is being removed or seriously injured or not planted, the values of the trees are added when calculating the payment required.

(The Council of Tree & Landscape Appraisers (CTLA) is an organization of tree care and landscape associations, including TCIA, the American Nursery and Landscape Association (ANLA), American Society of Consulting Arborists (ASCA), American Society of Landscape Architects (ASLA), PLANET, and International Society of Arboriculture (ISA). These organizations work together to compile and produce the CTLA Guide to tree and plant appraisals.)

(3) All property purchased through this fund must be must be in or partly in the city of Dallas and may not extend further than five miles from the Dallas city limit.

Revise to authorize the reforestation fund to be managed by the chief arborist with the assistance of the city forester and the director of the park and recreation department. Restrict the fund to the purchase of trees, while annual interest on the fund may be used for urban forest public education, urban forestry staff education, and the purchase of forestry equipment.
Suggested Reading: Landscape Tree Appraisal, Michael N. Dana (Purdue U.); Summary of Tree Valuation Based on CTLA Approach, CTLA; Comparing Formula Methods Of Tree Appraisal, Gary Watson (JOA) ; Tree Appraisal (Purdue Extension)

Evaluation of Texas Shade Trees, Alan D. Dreesen, Extension Forestry Specialist, Texas A&M System (pdf)

What is a Consulting Arborist? Check out the ASCA's Referral Directory for information on finding a local consultant.

(d) Conservation easement.

(1) The city manager is authorized to accept and approve on behalf of the city a conservation easement to conserve trees and other natural features, upon:

(A) approval as to form by the city attorney; and

(B) a determination by the building official that the easement area is suitable for conservation purposes, based on:

(i) the likelihood that the proposed conservation easement area would preserve vegetation on a parcel otherwise attractive for development;

(ii) the overall health and condition of the trees on the conservation easement property;

(iii) the suitability of the area as a wildlife habitat; and

(vi) other unique features worthy of preservation, e.g. water channels, rock formations, topography, or rare herbaceous or woody plant species.

(2) The conservation easement may be structured to be monitored and managed by a nonprofit association dedicated to the conservation of land, with the city as a joint grantee having the right, but not the duty, to monitor the management of the conservation area. The joint grantee of a conservation easement may be an eligible grantee such that the grantor will have the option of receiving a property tax benefit on the assessed value of the conservation easement area.

(3) The city manager may not accept a sole or joint conservation easement on behalf of the city, unless and until the owner provides the building official with:

(A) a tree survey as set forth in Section 51A-10.132, or an estimate of the caliper and type of protected trees documented in a manner determined to be reasonably accurate by the building official; and

(B) a preservation strategy for the conservation easement area.

(4) No person may place playground equipment or park amenities in a conservation easement area unless the building official has made a written determination that the amenities indicated on a site plan are unlikely to be detrimental to the conservation easement area.

(5) Conservation easement areas must be in or partly in the city of Dallas and may not extend further than five miles from the Dallas city limit. (Ord. 25155)