Editorial: Woodside needs tree ordinance Editorial: Woodside needs tree ordinance (December 14, 2005)

Is there any Peninsula city that does not protect its heritage trees from indiscriminant cutting?

The answer is yes, and somewhat shocking. Woodside, the leafy, horse-friendly home to many grand estates, opulent stables and down-home residents who prefer blue jeans to dress-up, has no tree ordinance and it probably won't until this spring, at the earliest.

The oversight is more than odd, given that the town is so strict on new construction and remodeling that residents recently complained about the months and months required to get a simple building permit.

Town Council members have singled out eucalyptus, Monterey pine and acacia trees as fire hazards and directed town staff to encourage their removal.

The wildfire along Albion Avenue in 2002 was said to have started when a dry eucalyptus branch dropped on a hot power line, which prompted the council to give residents the green light to clear the suspect species in any number and size.

And though the request was extraordinary, when Tom and Stacy Siebel put in a forest management plan at town hall to take down 99 eucalyptus trees on their 30-acre Portola Road property and along the road right-of-way, not a peep was heard. Planning Director Hope Sullivan approved the plan.

As a result, 99 trees came tumbling down, including the pillars of the nearly continuous tree canopy that runs from downtown past the Siebel property at the intersection of Woodside and Portola roads. As Councilwoman Carroll Ann Hodges said, "It's been utter devastation over there."

To be fair, the Siebels did nothing illegal, and were simply following the unwritten town policy of destroying a fire hazard. Even though many logging permits do not cover 99 trees, the approval was not questioned. Changing a doorknob would have raised more eyebrows at Town Hall.

After an outcry from many residents and pressure from the town's Conservation and Environmental Health Committee, the Planning Commission will review a draft of a new tree ordinance in January. It would require a permit to remove a tree with a trunk larger than 36 inches, measured from 4 feet off the ground.

We hope the commission rethinks the town's prejudice against some species of trees. Any species of tree that is not properly pruned can drop flammable branches if conditions are right.

Woodside's heritage trees are a precious resource, no matter what the species. If a property owner seeks to replace eucalyptus, or the other outcast species with native trees, permission should be granted for a slow transition, not wholesale clearcutting.

The Siebels plan to replace the lost trees with redwoods and oak trees. But it will take years to bring back the towering canopy that was lost this summer. The best outcome now will be for the town to adopt a solid tree-cutting ordinance that can put the brakes on huge tree-cutting plans.

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