When a tree grows in Costa Mesa

Deirdre Newman

The City Council discovered this week what some residents have felt

for a long time -- dealing with city policy, or the lack of it, can

be extremely frustrating.

On two occasions at Tuesday’s meeting, the council was stymied in

its efforts to resolve issues about the removal of city trees that

have become a nuisance.

That’s because the city doesn’t have a clear-cut policy on dealing

with this issue.

After failing the first time, Councilman Allan Mansoor was finally

able to convince his colleagues that it’s necessary to make the

process of city tree replacement and removal easier if the trees are

causing damage to the street, the sidewalk or somebody’s property.

“It should be a user-friendly policy,” Mansoor said.

The present process gives the Parks and Recreation Commission the

final say on tree removal, and appeals are not allowed.

The first tree removal issue centered around the Carleses’ desire

to remove a city-owned mature Canary Island pine tree in the public

right-of-way in front of their home. The Carleses want the tree

removed because of the mess the fallen needles create. They offered

to pay for the tree’s removal and said they did not want it to be

replaced.

Two city arborists evaluated the tree and found it to be healthy.

In August 2001, the Parks and Recreation Commission denied the

removal request because of insufficient cause. Appeals were allowed

at the time, and the decision was appealed to the City Council, which

also denied the request.

Judy Carles made an emotional plea to the council Tuesday,

standing next to her husband, who was hooked up to an oxygen tank

because of his emphysema. Judy Carles said the hassle of cleaning the

needles was too much for her because she devoted so much of her time

taking care of her husband.

But the council’s hands were tied because the Carleses had not

filed a new application for the removal. Several council members were

frustrated that they couldn’t resolve the issue from the dais, but

not frustrated enough at this point to support Mansoor when he made

his first attempt to ease the city’s tree removal and replacement

process.

The solution, suggested by City Manager Allan Roeder, was to

direct the matter back to the Parks and Recreation Commission, which

could consider the removal within the next 30 days.

The council’s frustration mushroomed during the next tree removal

discussion, when they considered the Weatherwaxes’ appeal of having

to pay to remove a city-owned tree, the roots of which reportedly

damaged their wall.

The Parks and Recreation Commission approved the removal request

in July, requiring that the Weatherwaxes pay for the removal and

replanting costs. At that time, John Weatherwax said he was willing

to pay the costs and subsequently removed the tree.

Ultimately, he decided it wasn’t right for him to pay for the

removal of a city tree that was damaging his property and appealed

the requirement. But appeals are not allowed anymore, and even if

they were, the appeal was not made within the required seven days.

So City Councilman Mike Scheafer brought the issue to the council.

And again, the council was stymied.

“Now you see how frustrated residents get sometimes in dealing

with the city,” resident Beth Refakes said. “I think the process is a

little dysfunctional.”

This time, council members not only rallied around Mansoor’s idea

but took it farther, directing staff to draft a policy for tree

removal since there isn’t one presently. They also suggested that

Weatherwax file a claim against the city for damages to his property.

* DEIRDRE NEWMAN covers Costa Mesa and may be reached at (949)

574-4221 or by e-mail at [email protected].