HomeMy WebLinkAboutReso - CC - 148-2024RESOLUTION NO. 148-2024
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF BURLINGAME
AMENDING THE MASTER FEE SCHEDULE TO ADOPT A TREE REPLACEMENT IN-
LIEU FEE AND AN INCREASE FOR APPEALS OF BEAUTIFICATION COMMITTEE
DECISIONS; AND AUTHORIZING THE FINANCE DIRECTOR TO MAKE SUCH
AMENDMENTS; CEQA DETERMINATION: EXEMPT PURSUANT TO STATE CEQA
GUIDELINES 15078, 15061(b)(3)
WHEREAS, the City of Burlingame has always sought to invest in, regulate, and
protect its urban forest by updating the rules governing public and private trees; and
WHEREAS, in 1971, the City Council added “Protection of City Street Trees” to
Title 11 of the Burlingame Municipal Code (BMC), and later added Chapter 11.06, “Urban
Reforestation and Tree Protection”; and
WHEREAS, revisions to BMC Chapter 11.06 last took place in 1992 and 1998; and
WHEREAS, City staff undertook significant review and discussion of other
agencies’ tree protection codes and experiences, including but not limited to codes in the
cities of Palo Alto, Menlo Park, Sacramento, Pasadena, and Santa Barbara; and
WHEREAS, beginning in November 2023, the Beautification Commission,
Planning Commission, and City Council held various public meetings to consider potential
updates to BMC Chapter 11.06; and
WHEREAS, on December ___, 2024, the City Council adopted Ordinance No.___
updating BMC Chapter 11.06 (the “Tree Ordinance Update”) to include new tree
replacement requirements and procedures, including updates that necessitate
amendments to the City of Burlingame Master Fee Schedule; and
WHEREAS, the current Master Fee Schedule contains a fee for appeals of the
Beautification Commission’s decisions that are made to the City Council, but the Tree
Ordinance Update requires such appeals to be made to the City Manager; and
WHEREAS, the Tree Ordinance Update’s new appeal procedure is nearly identical
to the Wireless Permit appeal in that the City Manager will act as a hearing officer and
thus the costs for such an appeal are also the same; and
WHEREAS, the Tree Ordinance Update allows payment of an in-lieu fee for tree
removal permit applicants who do not wish to replace a tree, and revenue generated will
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be used to further tree planting and tree replacement to offset the effects of the tree
removal; and
WHEREAS, the in-lieu fee has been determined based on the labor and material
costs of planting a new tree at the same diameter at standard height (DSH), and the
amount of this in-lieu fee has been compared to neighboring jurisdictions and found to be
similar; and
WHEREAS, the in-lieu fee is an alternative to tree replacement as a condition of
issuance of a tree permit and is not a tax under Proposition 26 because it falls under
either or both exception 1 (fees for benefit and privileges) and exception 6 (fees for
development of property).
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED:
1. The foregoing recitals are true and correct and are incorporated by reference into
this action.
2. The proposed amendments to the Master Fee Schedule are administrative and
are not a “project” under the California Environmental Quality Act (“CEQA”)
pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15078, and even if these amendments were
considered to be a project, their adoption would be exempt from CEQA review
pursuant to CEQA Guidelines section 15061(b)(3) becau se it can be seen with
certainty that minor edits to the Master Fee Schedule and adoption of an in -lieu
fee would not have an impact on the environment.
3. The Master Fee Schedule is hereby amended as follows (deletions shown in
strikeout, additions shown in italics/underline):
TREES AND PARK FEES Unit Fee
Memorial Tree Plantings
15 Gallon Per tree $350
24” Box Size Per tree $1,041
Memorial Bench Per bench $7,942
Additional Street Tree
Plantings
15 Gallon Per tree $773
24” Box Size Per tree $1,041
Protected Tree Removal
Application Fee
Residential Per Application $439
Residential – No Public
Notification
Per Application $750
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Commercial Per Application $140
Failure to Meet Replanting
Requirements of Permit Tree
Replacement In-Lieu Fee
Per Tree $1,500 $325 per inch of
diameter at standard
height
Arborist’s Plan Review for
landscaping requirements on
planning applications
Residential Each $166
Commercial Each $385
Arborist Check of
construction plans and
inspection of landscape
requirements on building
permit submittals
Residential Each $333
Commercial Each $676
Appeal to City Council City
Manager or designee from
Beautification Commission
decision (does not include
noticing costs)
Per Appeal $600 $968
Noticing, City Council Appeal Per Appeal $150
Street Banner Hanger Per Banner $940
Private Tree Emergency Work
Business Hours (M‐F; 7‐3:30) Per Hour $134
After Hours (Weekends &
Holidays)
Per Hour $151
4. This Resolution shall not become effective unless and until the City Council adopts
the Tree Ordinance Update (Ordinance No.___) and such Ordinance becomes
effective. The Finance Director is hereby authorized to make the amendments to
the Master Fee Schedule described above upon the effective date of this
Resolution.
_______________________________________
Donna Colson, Mayor
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l, Meaghan Hassel-Shearer, City Clerk of the City of Burlingame, certify the foregoing
resolution was adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council held on the 2nd day of
December 2024 by the following vote:
AYES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: BROWNRIGG, COLSON, LEE, PAPPAJOHN, STEVENSON
NOES: COUNCIL MEMBERS: NONE
ABSENT: COUNCIL MEMBERS: NONE
_______________________________________
Megan Hassel-Shearer, City Clerk
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