Laserfiche WebLink
KEY FINDINGS <br />Need for a dedicated Urban Forestry Team <br />The City has identified the need for a dedicated team of professionals to be responsible <br />for the urban forest program. Currently, the management of City -owned trees is carried <br />out by the Landscape Architecture Office and the Parks Division. Neither of these <br />divisions have roles that are solely focused on trees, so staff must balance competing <br />priorities with urban forest management tasks. Because many different City divisions <br />are affected by and manage trees in different ways, this can lead to conflicts, delays, <br />and inefficiencies. Currently, Parks is the default division for addressing tree -related <br />issues and coordinating work for City -owned trees, whether that's a sidewalk repair from <br />tree root damage or having trees pruned to maintain line of sight for traffic signals, but <br />the Streets division also contracts tree work and has different standards/practices that <br />they follow. This has raised concerns with Parks staff for the level of responsibility they <br />currently have around trees. <br />The addition of a dedicated Urban Forestry Team that manages both public and <br />private trees will help balance the urban forestry workload of overextended staff, <br />including relieving Parks staff of the workload for identifying solutions and delegating <br />responsibility for implementation when tree -related conflicts arise. Other tasks taken <br />on by the Urban Forestry Team would include the planning and implementation of new <br />programs, grant writing, community outreach and education, efficiently directing the tree <br />work required by other divisions, and tracking and implementing the strategic actions of <br />this UFMP to achieve the City's urban forest goals. Dedicated staff will allow for better <br />tracking and analysis on how to best utilize urban forestry funds. <br />CITY OF PLEASANTON URBAN FOREST MASTER PLAN 1 19 <br />