ITEM 23 ATTACHMENT 6 - Project Plans

Tree Report. April 2023. HortScience | Bartlett Consulting Merritt Property. Foothill Boulevard Holding Company. Page 9 HortScience│Bartlett Consulting ● Divisions of The F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Company Table 2, continued. Tree suitability for preservation. Merritt property. Pleasanton CA. Low Trees in poor health or possessing significant defects in structure that cannot be abated with treatment. These trees can be expected to decline regardless of management. The species or individual tree may possess either characteristics that are undesirable in landscape settings or be unsuited for use areas. Two hundred and thirteen (213) trees were rated as having low suitability for preservation including: 87 valley oak; 40 English walnut; 35 coast live oak; and 15 Calif. black walnut. We consider trees with high suitability for preservation to be the best candidates for preservation. We do not normally recommend retention of trees with low suitability for preservation in areas where people or property will be present. Retention of trees with moderate suitability for preservation depends upon the intensity of proposed site changes. Evaluation of Impacts and Recommendations for Action Appropriate tree retention develops a practical match between the location and intensity of construction activities and the quality and health of trees. The tree assessment was the reference points for tree condition and quality. To assess impacts to trees I reviewed the Merritt Property plan set dated December 2022, prepared by RJA, project engineers. Site improvements will be required throughout the site. A new connection (Street A) between the project area and Foothill Road will involve grading and installation of retaining walls. Grading is also widespread across the orchard area itself. A landscape area and bioretention facility will be created on the east part of the site, near I-680. Installation of improvements on the west side of Foothill Road will also impact trees. Widening the road requires extensive grading, largely in the form of cutting back slopes. Since many of the trees were located directly adjacent to the existing road, grading will necessitate significant tree removal. Two hundred sixty-one (261) trees were located within the proposed project area. I recommend preservation of 9 trees (8 Heritage) and removal of 252 (74 Heritage) (Tables 3 and 4). Included among trees recommended for removal are 21 Calif. black walnut trees and 31 English walnut trees that are either dead or in poor condition. An additional 118 trees were located along Foothill Road within and immediately areas proposed for improvements to the roadway included 11 that were located with in the Merritt property. I recommend preservation of 40 trees (15 Heritage) and removal of 78 (38 Heritage).