Send a Message to Seattle City Council and City Officials
Amend SDCI's 2024 Omnibus Council Bill 120823 to Save More Trees!
Comments due 9/18; please send now if possible!
The Seattle City Council’s Land Use Committee has scheduled a vote on SDCI’s 2024 Omnibus Ordinance Bill 120823 this coming Wednesday, Sept 18th at 2 PM in the Seattle City Council Chambers at Seattle City Hall.
You can comment by sending an e-mail to Council@seattle.gov and bruce.harrell@seattle.gov and/or send comments via our letter writing tool below.
The Omnibus bill’s purpose according to SDCI is “designed to clarify and improve the function of the existing code,” make “minor amendments” and “cleanup amendments” including to SMC 25.11 – the Tree Protection Ordinance.
We have evaluated the “Omnibus bill” relating to provisions affecting tree protections under SMC 25.11 and have found problems they have not been addressed and “clarifications” that weaken tree protections.
In summary the main issues and requested fixes are:
- Remove all language or references that state “The basic tree protection area cannot be modified” during development, primarily in SMC 25.11.070 and where mentioned elsewhere in the ordinance. Please note: the mandating of an extremely large circle around any tree to be retained and then not allowing it to be modified by an arborist in accordance with species specific and other arboricultural standards, creates such an unnecessarily huge tree protection area that tree preservation becomes incompatible with any development and so enables the developer to remove trees that otherwise could/should be saved.
- Remove 25.11.020 Exemption D in its entirety – Why should removing and planting trees as part of a tree and vegetation plan in environmentally critical areas be exempt from SMC 25.11?
- Remove the following amendment in the “SDCI Omnibus bill”: Footnote 1 in Table A for 25.11.050 “In all other zones, all trees may be removed when development is proposed.” This is not a minor amendment and should not be “slipped in” as such; it requires impact analysis of the number of trees and canopy loss expected by adding this language.
Our proposed amendments are in the spirit stated in the Analysis of the SDCI that the bill is “designed to clarify and improve the function of the existing code”
We have prepared a sample e-mail you can send to all the Council members and the Mayor with our suggested cleanup amendments. Feel free to add your own comments. The Land Use Committee will vote on this bill at their meeting on Sept 18th.
Please send an email today to urge the Seattle City Council to Amend SDCI’s 2024 Omnibus Council Bill 120823 to Save More Trees! Thanks for taking the time to comment!