GREEN COVE SPRINGS – After a few decades the Green Cove Springs Landscaping and Tree Ordinance was due for an upgrade according to Janis Fleet, who serves as the department of development services director for GCS. Fleet hopes the new ordinance will bring some “clarity and consistency” to the document—namely, replacing some confusing language and changing a few definitions.

“This is a city-wide landscape and tree protection ordinance,” Fleet started off the beginning of the meeting on March 2, to dispel any ideas that this would affect any county property outside city limits. “All we are doing is clearing up some duplications and inconsistencies. This is a better version on all accounts.”

With about 10 people in attendance, the meeting served as a briefing on the minor changes that will be put in place with the updated ordinance – the key points being a switch from an exemption for tree mitigation and clearcutting for “homesteaded” properties to an exemption for all residential properties. The other major change is some elimination of redundancies, lumping definitions like shade trees and canopy trees together as they serve the same purpose.

Current mitigation standards will be slightly tweaked, but will only apply to non-residential properties, something attendee Pat Garlinghouse was glad to hear. After removing a live oak from a multi-family home, Garlinghouse had to spend several hundred dollars replanting due to the city’s mitigation standards at the time, which only exempted homesteaded properties. By definition, a homesteaded property is a homeowners’ primary residence.

Another main concern for Fleet’s department is staying in compliance with the requirements for cities, like Green Cove Springs, that are designated as tree cities, a distinction Green Cove Springs has been proud to represent for 28 years. The Tree City designation is bestowed by Tree City USA, a subgroup of the Arbor Day Foundation, which requires cities to set in place funding, conservation and governance for a regimented tree promotion program within their city.

One change Fleet mentioned may come as a surprise to many as it was never an enforced rule. The old ordinance technically required emergency crews to acquire a tree removal permit before moving downed trees that may block roads or take out power lines during inclement weather. As Fleet noted, crews never got permits, because no one minded the companies removing downed trees after a bad storm. With the update, the ordinance will officially exempt utility companies and emergency response agencies from the need for getting a removal permit.

This same ordinance underwent some minor updates in 2000, and again in 2011, but once Fleet took over in 2012 she made it one of her priorities to get her staff working on an overhaul of the old ordinance, comparing it to the same documents from nearby communities and counties. Her staff has finally made it to the finish line as they type in the finishing touches on the new guidelines, with Fleet adding, “I think our code is a very readable comparison to other codes that are out there.”

The final meeting in which the public will be able to express their ideas, opinions and concerns will be held in the city council chambers on March 21. At that meeting, the final draft of the ordinance will be available to those hoping to take a more in-depth look at the changes before the code is finalized, filed and changed before the end-of-the-month deadline.