CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING AGENDA PACKET

Page 2 of 5 management strategy. On March 21, 2023, the Council approved an agreement with Dudek to prepare an Urban Forest Master Plan (CIP No. 20773). The Master Plan provides a comprehensive strategy to manage the City’s aging urban forest, respond to community needs, update the tree inventory and tree preservation ordinance, and advance the urban forestry goals identified in CAP 2.0. Staff held a project kick-off meeting in May 2023, created a website, advertised two surveys (the first with over 600 respondents and the second, which targeted the youth, with over 50 responses from residents under the age of 18), held public outreach events, met with commissions, and completed an inventory of City-maintained trees. The City Council also created a Tree Preservation Ordinance Ad Hoc Subcommittee and, on December 17, 2024, adopted a new tree preservation ordinance. The draft UFMP was presented to the Energy and Environment Commission (EEC) on January 15, 2025, to the Parks and Recreation Commission on February 13, 2025, and to the City Council on March 18, 2025. The EEC was supportive of the plan. Highlighting the need for community awareness and education regarding the importance of the urban forest, the EEC suggested that the City reach out to residents on social media and also provide a tree planting rebate program similar to the lawn conversion program. The Parks and Recreation Commission emphasized the importance of "the right tree for the right place" concept. The City Council emphasized community partnerships and fiscal sustainability, as well as stating its support for the guiding principles of the plan, the importance of planting the right tree in the right place, and that the UFMP should address concerns of the residents, such as fire protection. DISCUSSION The UFMP sets the vision, goals, and objectives for Pleasanton’s tree canopy over the next 25-year period and provides a roadmap on how to manage our trees to sustain a healthy urban forest that helps to address climate challenges while also meeting the challenges of an aging city with an expanding population. The plan directly affects the way Pleasanton residents, the development community, and City staff interact with, protect, and manage trees. The UFMP is based on the updated inventory, canopy cover analysis, public outreach, and updated ordinance. The inventory and canopy cover analysis are the primary tools used to define the City's urban forest assets and serve as the baseline for financial and management strategies and projections, as well as to determine whether the strategies and projections are realistic and attainable. Public outreach gauges the public support for the urban forest, which is critical as the majority (70 percent) of the urban forest is made up of private property. The ordinance helps to guide and enforce management strategies to ensure that tree canopy projections and the management strategy are realistic and attainable. All these components combine to increase the benefits of Pleasanton's urban forest and to ensure that the community and environment are prioritized. The vision for the UFMP is that Pleasanton’s urban forest is a well-managed, vital resource providing social, economic, and environmental benefits which contribute to the community’s quality of life, value, character and beauty. The plan is organized into three parts to address different audiences and concerns. Page 103 of 264