Willits City Council
November 9, 2022

111 E. Commercial Street
Willits, California 95490
Tel | 707.459.4601
Fax | 707.459.1562
www.cityofwillits.org

WILLITS CITY COUNCIL
AGENDA
NOVEMBER 9, 2022 | 6:30 PM | CITY COUNCIL CHAMBERS

1. OPENING MATTERS
a. Call to Order. | b. Pledge to Flag. | c. Roll Call.

2. PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS
The City Council welcomes participation in its meetings. Comments shall be limited to three (3) minutes per person so that everyone has an opportunity to address the Council. To expedite matters and avoid repetition, whenever any group of persons wishes to address the Council on the same subject matter, the Mayor may request the group appoints a spokesperson. This item is limited to matters under the jurisdiction of the City Council, which are not on the posted agenda. Public criticism of the City Council, Commission, Boards and Agencies will not be prohibited. The City Council will take no action.

3. PUBLIC MATTERS

4. ENACTMENT OF ORDINANCES
a. None.

5. CONSENT CALENDAR
The City Council considers matters listed under the Consent Calendar as routine. The Council will take action with a single motion and roll call vote. A Councilmember may request the removal of an item(s) from the Consent Calendar for separate discussion and subsequent action.

The following items as presented are before the City Council for approval or denial:
a. City Council Minutes:
i. October 12, 2022
ii. October 26, 2022
b. Resolution Ratifying and extending for an additional 30-days, approval of continuing Virtual City Council, Commission, and Committee meetings pursuant to AB 361.

6. MONTHLY ACTIVITY REPORTS
Matters that do not require action by the City Council but are of public interest. a. Business License Activity for October 2022

7. COMMISSIONS, AGENCIES AND AUTHORITIES
The Willits City Council meets concurrently as the City of Willits Planning Commission & City of Willits Successor Agency.

8. CITY MANAGER REPORTS AND RECOMMENDATIONS
a. Verbal Reports – No Action.

Willits City Council Agenda – November 9, 2022

9. DEPARTMENT RECOMMENDATIONS (ACTION ITEMS)
a. Discussion and Possible Adoption of the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan.

Presenting staff member: Community Development Director, Dusty Duley. b. Approve a Reclassification of the Existing Water Plant Operator/Meter Reader Position with the Title of Water Billing Meter Reader and Approve a Budget Revision to Include the Reclassified Position and Job Title, Effective November 10, 2022.

Presenting Staff Member: Human Resources Manager, Karen Stevenson.

10. DEPARTMENT MONTHLY REPORTS – (presented at the second meeting of each month) a. Airport. b. Community Dev. c. Engineering. d. Finance. e. Police Dept. f. Public Works. g. Utilities.

11. CITY COUNCIL ANNOUNCEMENTS, COMMUNICATIONS AND REPORTS

12. GOOD & WELFARE

13. CLOSED SESSION NOTICE
a. None.

14. ADJOURNMENT
Right to Appeal - Persons who are dissatisfied with the decisions of the City Council may have the right to a review of that decision by a court. The City has adopted Section 1094.6 of the Code of Civil Procedure, which generally limits to 90- days, the time within an individual and/or entity may judicially challenge the decisions of the City Boards and Agencies.

I hereby certify under penalty of perjury under the laws of the State of California that I posted the foregoing Agenda on the bulletin board at the main entrance of the City of Willits City Hall, located at 111 East Commercial Street, Willits, California, not less than 72 hours prior to the meeting set forth on this Agenda.

Dated this 3rd day of November, 2022.

Delores Pedersen, City Clerk
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Compliance
If you need assistance to attend or participate in a City Council meeting, please contact the City Clerk’s office at (707) 459-7121 or Fax (707) 459-1562. Notification at least 48-hours prior to the meeting will assist the City Clerk in assuring the implementation of reasonable accommodations to provide accessibility to the meeting. Our meeting room is wheelchair accessible and ADA parking is available.

Additional Meeting Information for Interested Parties
Materials related to an item on this Agenda submitted to the Willits City Council, Planning Commission, or Community Development Agency after distribution of the agenda packet are available for public inspection at City Clerk’s office at 111 E. Commercial Street, Willits, during normal business hours, Monday through Thursday 9 AM to 5:30 PM. 111 E. COMMERCIAL STREET
WILLITS, CALIFORNIA 95490
(707) 459-4601 TEL
(707) 459-1562 FAX

WILLITS CITY COUNCIL

MINUTES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 12, 2022
Vice Mayor Kanne called a regular meeting of the City Council to order at 6:30 p.m., in Council Chambers. The meeting was preceded by the pledge to the flag.

Roll Call: Councilmembers Madge Strong, Gerardo Gonzalez, Larry Stranske and Vice Mayor Greta Kanne were present. Mayor Rodriguez was absent.

Also present were staff members: Brian Bender, City Manager; Cathy Moorhead, Assistant City Manager; Jim Lance, City Attorney; Manuel Orozco, Finance Director; Dusty Duley, Community Development Director; Scott Herman, Public Works Director; Davey Bowles, Building Official and Delores Pedersen, City Clerk.

2. Public Communications
 Davey Bowles, Building Official, announced that the City of Willits is participating in Earthquake Brace and Bolt Program (EBB). It is a grant program that is paid by the California Earthquake Authority, Cal EOS and FEMA. The program allows people with homes built before 1980, that has a crawl space on permanent foundation that was not quite built to current code, seismically retrofit the home, and covers the cost up to $3,000. There is also a supplemental grant for low income. If the household makes less than $17,000, they could potentially qualify for a larger grant. There will be a link on the City of Willits Website.

3. Public Matters
None presented.

4. Enactment of Ordinances
None presented.

5. Consent Calendar
The following item(s) are recommended for approval or denial, as follows:
a. City Council Minutes:
i. September 28, 2022.

Public Comment: None presented.

Moved by Gonzalez/Seconded by Stranske and carried (4/0 - Mayor Rodriguez absent) to approve Consent Calendar item(s) (5a).

6. Monthly Activity Reports
Matters that do not require action by the City Council but are of public interest. a. Business License Activity for September 2022.

7. Commissions, Agencies and Authorities
None presented.
5a
Willits City Council Minutes of October 12, 2022 Page 2 of 4

8. City Manager Reports and Recommendations
a. Resolution in Support of Mendocino County Measure P (Proposed Sales Tax to Fund Fire Protection and Prevention).

Presenting Staff Member: Brian Bender, City Manager.

Public Comment: Fire Chief Bill Carter of Little Lake Fire Department, gave a description of what Measure P is and what the funds will be used for.

Moved by Gonzalez/Seconded by Strong and carried (4/0 - Mayor Rodriguez absent) to adopt Resolution (No. 2022-60) of the City of WiIlits Proclaiming its Support for Mendocino County Measure P, a Proposed Sales Tax to Fund Fire Protection and Prevention.
b. Resolution in Support of Mendocino County Measure O (Proposed Sales Tax to Support the County Library System).

Presenting Staff Member: City Manager Bender
Public Comment: Melinda Clarke of the Mendocino County Library gave a description of what Measure O is and what the funds will be used for.

Moved by Strong/Seconded by Stranske and carried (4/0 - Mayor Rodriguez absent) to adopt Resolution (No. 2022-61) of the City of WiIlits Proclaiming its Support for Mendocino County Measure O, a Proposed Sales Tax to Support the County Library System.

Verbal Reports – No Action.
 City Manager Bender congratulated Sergeant Brady on his new career path.

Sergeant Brady introduced Office Cody Marler and thanked the Council and the Community for the past 4 years he was stationed here in the City of Willits.  City Manager Bender announced the changes and aesthetics of City Hall. We want to make the building a showcase for the community. In a few more weeks we will have the counters installed, more painting done and more artwork on the walls.

Vice Mayor Kanne thanked Karen Matson and Brent Walker of the County Museum for putting up the artwork in the Council Chambers from the Museum’s collection.

Public Comment: None presented.

9. Department Recommendations (Action Items)
a. Discussion and Possible Action Approving the Annual Water Distribution System Flushing Plan.

Presented by staff member: Scott Herman, Public Works Director Public Comment: None presented.

Moved by Stranske/Seconded by Gonzalez and carried (4/0 vote, Mayor Rodriguez absent) to adopt Resolution (No. 2022-63) approving an Annual Water Distribution System Flushing Plan to guide the efforts of the Public Works Department to reduce the episodes of Brown Water.

10. Department Monthly Reports (ONLY SECOND MEETING OF EACH MONTH) None presented.

11. City Council Announcements, Communications and Reports Willits City Council Minutes of October 12, 2022 Page 3 of 4  Vice Mayor Kanne – Requested that Finance Director Orozco share what he covered at the Finance Committee meeting.
 Finance Director Orozco reported that during the Finance Committee meeting they reviewed the bi-annual budget, fiscal policies. Main topics were the Purchasing Policy, Escheat Policy, Cash Handling Policy, Fixed Asset Policy, Finance Crisis Policy and a Reserve Policy. There are plans with each Bi-annual budget the City will be re-updating those policies. With the reserves the City would like to implement multiple items which could operate in contingency, infrastructure, vehicle replacement and IT reserves. The Measure K Committee is still in the planning phase.
 Councilmember Strong - Reported that Economic Development & Financing Corporation (EDFC) is meeting on October 13, 2022. There are grants available to Micro Businesses (businesses with fewer than five employees) and were affected by COVID.

Mendocino Solid Waste Management Authority (MSWMA) - will have their meeting on October 20, 2022. The agenda does not include the contract for the privatization of services through C and S in Ukiah. MSWMA is hoping to make this transition by the end of the year. Services Contract, City of Ukiah to be administrator and the Facility that MSWMA owns are the three contracts that are needed for MSWMA. Because of the number of staff, MSWMA has not spent what was budgeted to spend and staffing is also the reason for the lack of services.
 Councilmember Stranske - Will be attending the Chamber of Commerce Board meetings and will be reporting back to Council.
 Vice Mayor Kanne - Attended the Museum Advisory Board meeting, they are very excited for the new activity at the Museum. The Museum has had several exhibits recently and activities on site with people from the community able to come and participate. The current exhibit is regarding Nuestra Alianza. The Museum Board is continuing to work on their strategic planning.

Mendocino Council of Governments (MCOG) meeting, a representative of CalTrans District 1 Clean California Program was in attendance remotely and announced that the second round of community grants in coming up. These grants are for small, underserved communities to help with clean up and beautification efforts. Community Development Director Duley stated that we are aware of the Beautification Grant being offered by CalTrans, and staff from the Community Development Department will be attending the seminar that will provide more details. Community Development Director Duley added that the City of Willits Planning Department is managing $8.8 million dollars in grant funding and has a good reputation with the CTC.

Public Comment: None presented.

No action taken.

12. Good & Welfare
Councilmember Strong – Reported that there was a Candidates Forum on Sunday October 9th, there was a lot of good information on Measure O & P. Both Councilmembers Strong and Gonzalez attended the Candidates Forum and reported that seven of the eight candidates running for School Board were in attendance, all of them care about the community, the kids and the candidates all feel that the Teachers, Administrative and Support Staff need to be paid more because we are way behind other jurisdictions.

13. Closed Session Notice
None presented.

14. Adjournment
Willits City Council Minutes of October 12, 2022 Page 4 of 4 Vice Mayor Kanne declared the meeting adjourned at 7:31 p.m. _____________________________
GRETA KANNE, Vice Mayor
City Council for the City of Willits
ATTEST:
__________________________

DELORES PEDERSEN
City Clerk
111 E. COMMERCIAL STREET
WILLITS, CALIFORNIA 95490
(707) 459-4601 TEL
(707) 459-1562 FAX

WILLITS CITY COUNCIL

MINUTES
WEDNESDAY, OCTOBER 26, 2022
Mayor Rodriguez called a regular meeting of the City Council to order at 6:31 p.m., in Council Chambers. The meeting was preceded by the pledge to the flag.

Roll Call: Councilmembers Madge Strong, Gerardo Gonzalez, Larry Stranske, Greta Kanne, and Mayor Saprina Rodriguez were present.

Also present were staff members: Brian Bender, City Manager; Cathy Moorhead, Assistant City Manager; Jim Lance, City Attorney; Manuel Orozco, Finance Director; Scott Herman, Public Works Director; Karen Stevenson, Human Resources Analysist; Taylor Perry, City Planner and Delores Pedersen, City Clerk.

2. Public Communications
None presented.

3. Public Matters
a. Jerry Ward of Solid Wastes of Willits, Inc., discussed the feasibility of providing City residents with an annual collection service of bulk items.

There was lengthy discussion and Mr. Ward answered questions of the Council.

4. Enactment of Ordinances
None presented.

5. Consent Calendar
The following item(s) are recommended for approval or denial, as follows:
a. City Council Minutes:
i. None presented.

6. Monthly Activity Reports
Matters that do not require action by the City Council but are of public interest. a. None presented.

7. Commissions, Agencies and Authorities
a. Discussion and possible action on Conditional Use Permit Application No. UM-16-01/22 for Lissy’s LLC. (John’s Place Bar). The petitioner seeks approval to expand an existing full-service bar, by 600 square feet for a proposed combined footprint of 1,749 square feet. The purpose of this addition is to accommodate space for an ADA accessible restroom, additional occupancy, pool tables, darts, and arcade games. The bar will continue to operate between the hours of 9 AM to 2 AM each day.

Public Comment: Members of the community spoke in support of the project. 5a
Willits City Council Minutes of October 26, 2022 Page 2 of 4 Moved by Strong/Seconded by Gonzalez and carried unanimously to adopt Resolution (No. 2022-64) of the Planning Commission of the City of Willits, approving modification to a Conditional Use Permit No. U-16-01/22 to allow a 600-foot expansion of an Existing Full-Service Bar at 377 South Main Street (APN 006-046-42).

8. City Manager Reports and Recommendations
a. Verbal Reports
 City Manager Bender gave a report clarifying that the Swimming Pool is not a City facility. The Pool was constructed and initiated by the City in the early 60’s, at that time the City entered into an agreement with the School District, the City oversaw the construction and then handed over the facility to the School District for their oversight, management and operations. Lately the City has been operating the Pool for the summer months to accommodate public usage during the summer and for swim lessons. This arrangement still stands, and we would like to extend an invite to the School Superintendent, Mark Beebe, to review the arrangement and the discrepancy on what the terms are. The City recognizes that the community deserves to have a pool and swimming facility and we would like to accommodate that. In turn this is going to require us to work with the School District to put a better agreement in place so that we can accommodate the needs of the public for swimming activities. Potentially extending it out beyond the summer months.

Public Comment: None presented.

9. Department Recommendations (Action Items)
a. Adopt Resolution Accepting the Construction Completion of the Blosser Lane Rehabilitation Project, (Project No. 2022-02), and Authorizing the Filing of the Notice of Completion.

Presenting staff member: Andrea Trincado, Project Manager.

Public Comment: None presented.

Moved by Gonzalez/Seconded by Stranske and carried unanimously to adopt Resolution (No. 2022-63) of the City Council to accept construction of the Blosser Lane Rehabilitation Project, (Project No. 2002-02) and authorizing filing the Notice of Completion.

10. Department Monthly Reports
a. Airport – No further comments.
b. Community Development Department – No further comments. c. Engineering –
 Project Manager Trincado added that construction on the Groundwater project was completed, and the Notice of Completion will be forth coming. Councilmember Strong mentioned that the City saved $116,700 last fiscal year for having purchased the Solar Array at the Water Plant.
d. Finance –
 Finance Director Orozco reported that the audit has officially started, and we have received three RFP proposals for a new City accounting software company.

Willits City Council Minutes of October 26, 2022 Page 3 of 4 e. Police Department –
 Sergeant Gray reported that the new Patrol Officer is patrolling solo, New Hire completed second week of field training. The Police Cadet position we were looking to fill did not pan out. We have pending interviews for the Community Service Officer (CSO) position and a dispatch position. The new Sergeant and one of the officers have taken on an Instagram Page for the department to do community outreach. f. Public Works – No further comments.
g. Utilities –
 Public Works Director Herman added that we gained about nine-acre feet during the rains we received this month. The Morris Dam Valve was changed out by Wipf Construction. He also explained that the clarifier at the sewer plant had a steel ring that had separated from the concrete causing a short circuit. This project is currently in process with hopes to be complete before the rains come.

No action taken.

11. City Council Announcements, Communications and Reports  Councilmember Strong - Economic Development & Financing Corporation (EDFC), there are still funds in the Small Business Covid Relief loan program available to businesses that would like to apply. EDFC is also paying off the investors of the Ukiah Wool Mill. Mendocino Solid Waste Management Authority (MSWMA) keeps reassuring Councilmember Strong that the contracts they have been waiting on have all been written and will cover all the required information, but she has not seen them. Councilmember Strong is hoping they will be produced at the next meeting.

These contracts are for privatizing the Solid and Hazardous Waste services. One contract is for the services being taken over by C and S in Ukiah, the other contract is regarding the property which is going to be retained by MSWMA and a third contract is with the City of Ukiah to be the administrator of the arrangements. The MSWMA board will continue to oversee the services.
 Mayor Rodriguez - Mendocino Transit Authority (MTA) – At the last meeting they discussed the acceptance of the tri-annual audit. Discussion was had about the Ukiah Transit Center Feasibility Study. There is $150,000 in the Mendocino Council of Governments (MCOG) budget to study the feasibility of what location would work best for the Transit Center. The MTA Mobility Solution Study is happening in five local communities trying to figure out what the local transit needs are. The big topic at the MTA meeting is that public transportation is not being utilized as much as it was before the Covid Pandemic started. Willits is down about 50% in ridership. MTA is having to use their 5311 Funds to offset some costs due to the lack of ridership.

November is No Fee November, doing this in hopes of bringing people back to riding public transit.

Public Comment: None present.

No action taken.

12. Good & Welfare
 Councilmember Gonzalez announced that he will be cooking at the Willits High School Football game on Friday.
 Councilmember Strong attended the virtual Senator McGuire Town Hall meeting.

Some day we will have a wonderful trail that goes from Willits up to Eureka. Election day is November 8, 2022.

Willits City Council Minutes of October 26, 2022 Page 4 of 4

13. Closed Session Notice

14. Adjournment
Mayor Rodriguez declared the meeting adjourned at 7:46 p.m. _____________________________
SAPRINA RODRIGUEZ, Mayor
City Council for the City of Willits
ATTEST:
__________________________

DELORES PEDERSEN
City Clerk
BL# Name Address Date Issued Type of Bussiness
7094 Tango Willits Megan Young 158 S Main St 10/18/2022 Retail Cosmetics 7095 South Main Auto Jose Ramirez-Diaz 1550C S Main St 10/26/2022 Auto Mechanic Shop 7096 LH Management Recources LLC Icanic Brands Company 175 N Lenore Ave 10/26/2022 Management Services 7097 Sammydays Lashes Samantha Bruno 55 N Main St 10/26/2022 Eyelashes 7098 Kelly's Diner Fortino Samuel Diaz Rendon 77 S Main St 10/26/2022 Restraunt 7099 Common Collectibles & Gaming Lounge Dakota Blunt, Zachary Shabert, 393A S Main St 10/26/2022 Video Gaming Lounge & Michael Overholt
7100 Land Logistics, Inc Brian Millar 10/26/2022 Out of Town Contractor 7102 Krystal Rose Nails Krystal Rose Kammer 55 N Main St 10/26/2022 Nail Salon 7103 Talia's Tie Dye and Gem's Ahamed Hernandez 354 N Main St 10/26/2022 Tie Dye & Gem's 7104 Mendo Mobile Detailing Aurelio Hernandez 1750 S Main St 10/26/2022 Mobile Detailing 7105 Granite Petroleum R. Joseph Myers 10/26/2022 Out of Town Contractor 7106 TG Custom Design Gloria Westby 315 Blosser Lane 10/26/2022 T-Shirt Designs 7107 Planwest Partners Inc Colette Santsche, Vanessa Blodgett 10/26/2022 Out of Town Contractor 7108 Tall Tree Engineering Susanne Loutsis & Dustin Fredricey 1505 Casteel 10/26/2022 Engieering Designer 7109 Bridges Construction Jonathan Bridges 10/26/2022 Out of Town Contractor 7110 Mirror Mirror on Wall Alejandra Tovar 255 S Main St 10/26/2022 Hair Salon 7111 R. Franco Construction Ryan Franco 158 Pearl St 10/26/2022 General Contractor 7112 Tio's Home Repair Jorge L Luna 1253 Magnolia St 10/26/2022 Handyman 7113 Proto Pipe, LLC Phillip Jergenson 273 Franklin Ave 10/26/2022 Machine Shop 7114 Pacific Redwood Medical Group John D Colfax/Debbie Marks 1 Marcela Dr 10/26/2022 Professional Services 7115 Budd and Blunts Hobby and Printing Michael Overholt/Dakota Blunt 393A S Main St 10/26/2022 Printing Co. 7116 Jimmy Mobile Repair Jimmy Cunningham 425 S Main St 10/26/2022 Automotive Repair 7117 Hidden Gem Mail Lounge Emily Cavallari 20 Wood St 10/26/2022 Nail Lounge 7118 W. Bradley Electric, Inc. Leslie Murphy 10/26/2022 Out of Town Contractor 7119 North County Real Estate Lee Bell 1466 S Main 10/26/2022 Real Estate Broker New Business License - October 2022
Item No. 9a
Meeting Date: November 9, 2022

AGENDA SUMMARY REPORT
To: Honorable Mayor and Council Members
From: Dusty Duley, Community Development Director
Agenda Title: DISCUSSION AND POSSIBLE ADOPTION OF THE WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN Type: Presentation Consent Regular Agenda Public Hearing Urgent Time: 25 min.

Summary of Request: City staff, along with a third-party consultant (Dudek), developed an Urban Forestry Management Plan (UFMP) to provide a long-term guide for the preservation and enhancement of the urban forest in Willits. The UFMP provides a framework for the City’s urban forest, identifies key management issues, outlines goals, objectives, and actions and proposes priorities for implementation. Further overview of the UFMP and its development process, including public input, is provided in the staff report.

The UMFP final draft is provided as Attachment A and the accompanying Technical Assessment as Attachment B. A tree maintenance responsibility graphic was also developed in both English (Attachment C) and Spanish (Attachment D) to highlight City versus property owner responsibilities related to tree maintenance. The final draft Urban Forest Management Plan is being presented to Council for consideration of adoption.

Background: Urban forests require careful management to ensure their preservation, restoration, and expansion. In certain areas of the City, the urban forest is aging, mature trees conflict with infrastructure, tree canopies are lacking, and species diversity is in decline. The Council directed staff to seek grant funding to develop a comprehensive management plan for the City’s urban forest as well as plant new street trees.

The City was awarded a grant from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (Cal Fire) for $256,525. This grant award included $75,000 to assist the City with the creation of a UFMP.

A public hearing was held before the City Council on October 27, 2021, whereby staff and our consultants presented an overview and key findings from the UFMP public draft. Revisions to the UFMP have been completed based on comments received at the public hearing. The staff report provides an overview of completed revisions.

Recommended Action: After conducting a public hearing, adopt a Resolution finding that the project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) and adopting the Urban Forest Management Plan.

Alternative(s): Direct staff to make any changes to the Urban Forest Management Plan and bring Plan back at future Council meeting for consideration of adoption.

Fiscal Impact: There is no fiscal impact associated with the recommended action.

Amended Text: To implement provisions of the adopted Urban Forestry Management Plan requires codification. At this time, there is no determination if staff will complete the codification process through an internal effort or if the City retains a consultant to complete task. Either method will require a supporting budget amendment.

Personnel Impact: Staff time will be expended in carrying out many of the tasks identified in the Urban Forestry Management Plan. Some of these tasks are considered to be routine functions of the various City departments while others may require significant staff time and additional resources.

Amended Text: It is uncertain at this time which Department will oversee the implementation of the recommendations contained in the Urban Forestry Management Plan. The uncertainty is based upon the Document Amended November 4, 2022 (BPB)
Sections: Fiscal Impact & Personnel Impact
current staff levels and the organization’s ability to absorb new assignments without compromising existing levels of service. With the extensive list of tasks described in the Plan and the extent of trees throughout the community, there is a strong possibility in the future, the Council may receive a request to create a dedicated position.

Reviewed by: City Manager City Attorney Assistant City Manager City Clerk Finance Director Human Resources Risk Manager
Council Action: Approved Denied Other: ________________________________________ Records: Agreement Resolution #_________ Ordinance #_________ Other _________ PAGE - 1

STAFF REPORT TO WILLITS CITY COUNCIL FOR

ADOPTION OF THE WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

November 9, 2022
APPLICANT: CITY OF WILLITS

REQUEST: Consider the Adoption of the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan
LOCATION: Citywide

ENVIRONMENTAL
DETERMINATION: Exempt from CEQA

STAFF RECOMMENDATION:

1. Conduct a public hearing and consider all public testimony and other information relating to the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan and CEQA exemption.

2. Adopt Resolution 2022-xx finding that the project is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) and adopting the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan.

SUMMARY:

Background. Urban Forestry refers to the management of trees and vegetation within the urban environment. Those trees that we find on our city streets, in front of our homes and in our parks.

These trees are not only part of our heritage; they are part of the infrastructure of every city. Trees provide tremendous benefits to all of us. Throughout the state, catastrophic wildfires amplified by the drought and available fuels demonstrate that new strategies are needed to effectively manage the wildland-urban interface. Climate change is predicted to cause substantial negative impacts to commonly planted street tree species in California. Developing a sustainable urban forest can provide direct benefits to creating resilient communities by providing cooler temperatures during extreme heat, intercepting and storing stormwater, and offering cleaner air to our community. Growing and maintaining a sustainable urban forest will help ensure trees continue to deliver maximum levels of these vital services when adverse conditions arise.

The City of Willits was awarded a grant from the CAL FIRE Community Forestry Program to complete an Urban Forest Management Plan (UFMP), inventory of street and park trees, and plant and maintain trees in disadvantaged communities. The Community Development Department and Public Works Departments were the main City departments responsible for supporting the development of the UFMP, and a third-party consultant (Dudek) was selected to conduct the inventory, analyses, and prepare the UFMP.

Process. The following steps were conducted to develop the UFMP.

STAFF REPORT FOR URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN PAGE - 2

Analysis of current practices: The analysis of current practices was initially informed by reviewing City planning documents, including the Vision 2020: General Plan Revision; Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan; Willits Safe Routes to School Action Plan; Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan; and the Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study.

It also included an analysis of City planning practices, tree ordinances, standard details, annual service data and budget levels.

Stakeholder interviews. Understanding the effectiveness of the urban forest management program was further informed by interviews with City staff, and external stakeholders. The interviews explored the role each stakeholder had in influencing City tree management, clarified internal City procedures, and informed areas where the City could improve management of the urban forest. The interviews included City staff from the Community Development Department, Public Works Department, Engineering Division, Caltrans, and two Willits business owners.

Community engagement. Input from residents and stakeholders helped to inform the analysis of City management practices and the development of guiding principles, goals, and objectives of the UFMP. Due to COVID, community engagement was limited to online meeting formats. The City held an online community meeting in February 2021 attended by 12 participants. To reach a larger audience of residents unable to attend the online meetings, the City implemented a survey that was made available in hard copy and online formats.

Nearly 80 responses were recorded.

Urban forest inventory and analysis. Dudek conducted an inventory of City-managed trees in September 2020. The scope of the inventory included collecting tree location and arboricultural attribute information of City-owned trees within the City limits including public sidewalks, parkway strips, street medians, public rights-of-ways, parks, and other accessible City-owned property. The inventory was analyzed using sustainability metrics to determine the condition of trees and to understand what management practices will need to be improved to have the most meaningful impact on tree health and safety.

The City’s entire urban forest (public and private property) was analyzed to determine the canopy cover extent, and the condition of trees using sustainability metrics. The City canopy cover and land use was derived from USFS LiDAR and other satellite spatial imagery by using an artificial intelligence learning model to classify what is a tree, shrub, grass, building, and other infrastructure, and then determine the differences in height between each classification.

The analysis resulted in land use classifications of 16% tree canopy.

Public review. The final UFMP and Technical Assessment documents were released for public review on August 23, 2022. Notice of the availability of the draft UFMP and Technical Assessment was posted on the City website. A copy of the draft UFMP and Technical Assessment were made available for public review at the City of Willits Community Development Department. The final UFMP and Technical Assessment was also available online at https://cityofwillits.org/277/Urban-Forest.

Public hearing. A public hearing was held before the City Council on October 27, 2021, whereby staff and our consultants presented an overview and key findings from the urban forest management plan public draft. Members of the City Council and the public provided comments. The following proposed revisions were made to the previous draft Urban Forest Management Plan following its review at the October 27, 2021 City Council meeting:

STAFF REPORT FOR URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN PAGE - 3

• A paragraph was added to Section 2.2.1: Species Diversity, to clarify that species diversity metrics are presented as guidelines, and are not intended to justify the removal of healthy trees (page 29).
• A sentence was added to Section 3.2.2. Species Diversity of Rec Grove Park, to state that an arborist review of all Rec Grove Park trees should be prioritized (page 45). • Both the UFMP and Technical Assessment were reproduced in a full graphics layout. • A tree maintenance responsibility graphic was added to clarify the responsible party to address tree maintenance issues on public and private property. • Appendix I: A sample Municipal Tree Ordinance was developed and attached to the UFMP to provide a draft tree protection ordinance for the City, which could be considered for future adoption. This sample ordinance is not subject to adoption at this public hearing.

Key Findings. The UFMP identifies eight key findings that summarize the sections of the report:

The City must address its aging tree inventory. Much of the City’s inventory is aging and mature. Only 20% of the inventory is immature, which indicates the tree inventory may not have a population of newly planted trees to adequately replace mature trees as they reach the end of their life. If the age distribution continues without increased tree planting, the City can expect the tree’s environmental services to decline as the population becomes senescent and requires removal.

The management of the urban forest is limited by financial resources. Public Works received $8,000 for tree pruning in FY20/21, which was insufficient to conduct regular maintenance of the City-managed tree inventory (425 trees). This level of funding has resulted in reactive tree maintenance only being conducted when a tree is identified with an elevated level or risk to public safety. Public Works staff must find the funds to mitigate the tree risk concern in other budgets, make one-time requests to City Council, or identify limited special funding. This type of reactive maintenance is more expensive than actively pruning trees and may increase the risk associated with a tree by not mitigating a defect in a timely manner.

The urban forest program is limited by staffing. The Public Works Department conducts all public works requests, including those related to trees such as pruning, branch failures, and tree maintenance. The City does not have an on-staff arborist to assist in managing the City tree population, and staff rely on their own experience with trees when making maintenance decisions. City staff expressed that budget constraints, vacant positions, and competing workload make it difficult to complete adequate tree maintenance. The combination of limited City staff and resources to hire contractors has resulted in deferred and reactionary maintenance of a mature tree population.

Recreation Grove Park must be prioritized for tree risk and maintenance assessments.

More than 25% of the City’s tree inventory is planted in Rec Grove Park. Of these trees, nearly 90% are mature valley oaks with varying health conditions and a site history of tree failures.

These factors, coupled with the frequency of use by residents, increase the level of risk for these trees. As of 2021, approximately one-third of the trees remain unassessed for tree risk.

These assessments will give City tree managers the information needed to make decisions on investing limited City resources into tree maintenance. The initial costs to complete the assessment can be offset by prioritizing management actions on the most urgent tree issues to prevent the need for more costly emergency tree work.

STAFF REPORT FOR URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN PAGE - 4

Canopy cover is low. Despite the City’s location in a forested area, canopy cover in Willits is relatively low. Because the City lacks available planting space within its developed areas, Willits may need to rely on private property owners to plant trees in their own yards to meet the City’s canopy cover goals. However, throughout the UFMP process, stakeholder interviews, and survey results, mixed opinions were shared by community members about City involvement with private property. Many political and social factors contribute to these opinions, but fire risk hazards were frequently addressed as a main concern during stakeholder interviews. The City may face declining canopy cover in future years if it does not implement a firesafe community education program.

A community engagement strategy is needed. Residents place a high value on the City’s trees, with 89% of public survey respondents stating that they view trees as either more important or equally as important as other City-maintained infrastructure. Should the City plan to increase canopy cover, it will need to implement a community outreach strategy to ensure residents understand the importance of trees in the Willits landscape. Approximately 82% of survey respondents stated that educating the community would have the most impact towards achieving healthy trees.

The City must strengthen tree management practices. Ninety-three trees were identified in the tree inventory with hazardous deadwood, hangers, disease, or broken branches that post potential safety hazards. The City should consider allocating funds to address the maintenance needs of these trees to mitigate against potential limb failure. After this pruning is complete, the City may look to establish a 5 to 7-year pruning cycle. This strategy would allow the City to appropriately plan annual budgets around a consistent number of trees that require pruning (40 to 60 per year) and reduce the potential for more costly emergency tree work. If the City is unable to prioritize the pruning of priority 1 and 2 trees, it will most likely continue to use most of its tree maintenance funds on a limited number of emergency situations.

Long-range planning policies could be improved to better enforce tree ordinances.

Many of the City’s long-range plans aspire to increase tree plantings and landscaping in the City by including trees in development projects. Redevelopment along Main Street and the City’s downtown core present key opportunities to increase canopy cover while adding aesthetic appeal and creating an inviting pedestrian-friendly downtown. However, the City lacks strong policies and ordinances that protect or require trees in development projects.

The adoption of implementable ordinances supported by robust code enforcement will require support from City leadership and the community.

The City lacks a policy that clarifies tree maintenance responsibility. The City Code does not currently stipulate the party responsible for maintenance and management of trees and damage to infrastructure on public and private property. The City should consider further discussion and adopt an ordinance that clearly defines responsibility. A draft tree protection ordinance for the City is attached to the UFMP as Appendix I, and may be considered for future adoption. This sample ordinance is not subject to adoption at this public hearing.

The final Urban Forest Management Plan (Attachment A) and Technical Assessment (Attachment B), are attached to this report.

STAFF REPORT FOR URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN PAGE - 5

Environmental Analysis. The request has been processed through the City Environmental Review Process and it has been determined that the adoption of a urban forest management plan document is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to CEQA Guidelines Section 15061(b)(3) as CEQA applies only to projects that have the potential for causing a significant effect on the environment, and it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the proposed Willits Urban Forest Management Plan may have a significant effect on the environment, since the proposed plan does not create changes in the physical environment, does not result in any changes to the General Plan or Implementing Zoning Ordinance land use policies, and any development that occurs in the future subject to such standards will undergo an independent analysis pursuant to the requirements of CEQA.

ATTACHMENTS:

Attachment A – Urban Forest Management Plan
Attachment B – Technical Assessment
Attachment C – Tree Maintenance Responsibility Graphic
Attachment D - Tree Maintenance Responsibility Graphic (Española) __________________________ _________________________________________

DATE DUSTY DULEY

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

CITY OF WILLITS

URBAN FOREST
MANAGEMENT PLAN Prepared by
AUGUST 2022

URBAN FOREST

MANAGEMENT PLAN D U D E K
ii | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | iii

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
City of Willits Staff
Brian Bender, City Manager
Cathy Moorhead, Assistant City Manager
Dusty Duley, Community Development Director
Kenan O’Shea, Public Works Superintendent
Jim Robbins, Community Development Specialist
Michelle Johnson, Assistant Planner
Jeremy Ronco, Project Manager
Andrea Trincado, Project Manager
Brandy Sanderson, Office Assistant
Bill Wilson, Former Public Works Superintendent
City of Willits Councilmembers
Saprina Rodriguez, Mayor
Gerardo Gonzalez
Larry Stranske
Madge Strong
Greta Kanne
Community Members
Linda Matz
Louis Rohlicek
California Department of Forestry
and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE)
Julia Gowin
Jimi Scheid

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
California Department of Transportation
Jesse Robertson
Rex Jackman
Phlora Barbash
Funding Provided by

CAL FIRE
Prepared By
Dudek – Urban Forestry Division
Abby Beissinger, Dana Link-Herrera, Ryan Allen, and Scott Eckardt iv | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | v The City of Willits urban forest will serve as a Gateway to the Redwoods and be a healthy, equitable, and sustainably funded resource that provides ecological, social, and economic benefits to all Willits residents.

VISION
VISION
VISION
VISION
VISION

URBAN FOREST

MANAGEMENT PLAN
vi | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | vii Acknowledgments ...............................................ii Vision....................................................................iv 1 Why The City Needs an Urban Forest
Management Plan................................................8 2 Historical and Environmental Context.........12
3 Developing The Willits Urban Forest
Management Plan..............................................14

3.1 Analysis of Current Practices................................................16

3.2 Stakeholder Interviews .........................................................16

3.3 Community Engagement......................................................16

3.4 Urban Forest Inventory and Analysis..................................17 4 Key Findings.....................................................18

4.1 Aging Tree Inventory .............................................................19

4.2 Budget Limitations ................................................................19

4.3 Staffing Constraints...............................................................19

4.4 Recreation Grove Park ..........................................................20

4.5 Canopy Cover is Low .............................................................20

4.6 Community Engagement/Outreach ....................................20

4.7 Tree Management Practices.................................................21

4.8 Long Range Planning and Policies.......................................21 5 Urban Forest Data ..........................................22

5.1 Status of the Urban Forest ...................................................23

5.1.1 Canopy Cover...............................................................................23

5.1.2 Environmental Services/Economic Benefits .........................25

5.1.3 Species Diversity Summary.......................................................26

5.1.4 DBH/Age Distribution Summary..............................................28

5.1.5 Health Composition....................................................................29

5.1.6 Relative Performance Index Summary...................................30

5.1.7 Importance Values Summary...................................................31

5.2 City Management of the Tree Program...............................32

5.2.1 Funding..........................................................................................33

5.2.2 Staff.................................................................................................33

5.2.3 Tree Maintenance .......................................................................34 6 Community Engagement...............................36

6.1 Public Survey ..........................................................................37

6.2 Community Meeting & Stakeholder Interviews .................39 7 Recommendations..........................................40 8 Strategic Plan ..................................................50

8.1 Guiding Principles, Goals, Objectives..................................51 9 Monitoring Plan ..............................................58

9.1 Vibrant Cities Lab Assessment.............................................59

FIGURES
1 Urban Heat Island Effect................................10 2 Canopy Cover ..................................................24

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
8 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 9 Californians are learning that adaptation to changing environmental conditions is becoming increasingly important.

Throughout the state, catastrophic wildfires amplified by the drought and available fuels demonstrate that new
strategies are needed to effectively manage the wildlandurban interface. New laws, policies, and regulations are typically the result of these environmental changes as policy makers grapple with the best ways to reduce environmental impacts from humans as well as how to protect
humans from the impacts of the changing environment.

Climate change is predicted to cause substantial negative impacts to commonly planted street tree species in California (McBride and Lacan 2018). Over the past century, average maximum temperatures in California have increased between

1.6°F and 2.5°F (Lynn 2015), and these temperatures are expected to continue to rise over the coming years. In
Mendocino County, temperatures are predicted to increase by 5°F by 2100, and Snowpack is anticipated to decline to nearly zero by 2090 (Maizlish et al. 2017).

Longer, more intense periods of drought and more variable periods of precipitation with increased flooding will make finding additional irrigation water or funding for irrigation improvements for street trees a challenge (Swain et al. 2018; McBride and Lacan 2018).

These rising temperatures are also amplified through
the urban heat island effect (Figure 1). Concrete, asphalt, and other hardscape, including roads, buildings, and
sidewalks absorb heat, resulting in these surfaces reaching temperatures that are as much as 50°F to 90°F hotter
than the air temperature on a sunny day (EPA 2019a). The absorbed heat is slowly released throughout the night,
resulting in temperatures that may be up to 22°F warmer overnight, when cities should be cooling down (EPA 2019b).

The effects of a hotter climate and prolonged heat waves will not only impact the need for energy to cool buildings but will also have a profound impact on human health. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), extreme heat is often responsible for the most weather-related deaths in the country (FEMA 2018).

Developing a sustainable urban forest can provide direct benefits to creating resilient communities. Resilient
communities, like urban forests, are better able to adapt to the challenges presented by climate change. Urban
forests help to create resilient communities by providing cooler temperatures during extreme heat, intercepting and storing stormwater, and offering cleaner air to those who live beneath the tree canopy. Growing and maintaining a sustainable urban forest will help ensure trees continue to deliver maximum levels of these vital services when adverse conditions arise. The Willits UFMP provides the framework for the management practices and policies that will help guide the City toward a robust and sustainable urban forest.

Why The City Needs An Urban Forest Management Plan | SECTION 1 SECTION 1
SECTION 1
SECTION 1
Snowpack is anticipated to
decline to nearly zero by 2090
(Maizlish et al. 2017).

Over the past century, average
maximum temperatures in
California have increased
between 1.6°F and 2.5°F
(Lynn, 2015).

SECTION 1 Why The City
Needs An
Urban Forest
Management
Plan
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 11
SECTION 1 | Why The City Needs An Urban Forest Management Plan 1 2 3 Solar energy is
emitted by the
sun.

Heat is absorbed
and retained
by dark, urban
surfaces.

Heat is slowly emitted
throughout the day
and evening, increasing
temperatures.

NO TREES OR GREENERY
Figure 1. Urban Heat Island Effect
4 Increased temperatures
discourage pedestrian traffic,
negatively impacting the local
economy.

Why The City Needs An Urban Forest Management Plan | SECTION 1 1 2 3 Solar energy
emitted by the
sun is partially
absorbed by
trees.

Shaded surfaces
absorb and retain
less heat.

Auto emissions are
partially absorbed by
trees.
4 Cleaner air, cooler weather
creates a pedestrian-friendly
environment positively
impacting local businesses.
4 4
No trees
to absorb
auto emissions {
'
k>/
~
V
7 i
**
)
r
—1%
fe
A
V. n
, A
A '
/
12 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 13 SECTION 2
SECTION 2
SECTION 2
SECTION 2
Historical and
Environmental
Context
Historical and Environmental Context | SECTION 2
Known as the “Gateway to the Redwoods” and the “Heart
of Mendocino County”, Willits is a small city with a population of approximately 4,890 as of 2019 (City Data 2021). Located in central Mendocino County, Willits is nestled in Little Lake Valley surrounded by secondary forest consisting of tan oak, madrone, Douglas fir, and redwood trees within the Pacific Coast Range. The City was originally inhabited by the Pomo tribe of Native Americans, and later settled by pioneering ranchers in the 1850s. Incorporated in 1888, Willits’ unique location along the Redwood Highway (Highway 101) and
the Northwestern Railroad spurred growth throughout the 1900s, as shops, restaurants, and other businesses sprang up along Main Street (Willits Chamber of Commerce 2021).

Today, Willits is one of the largest population centers in Mendocino County and is surrounded by agricultural lands, rural residential, forestlands, and open rangelands.

Natural communities in
Willits include coastal prairie
grasslands, mixed evergreen
forest, and oak and riparian
woodlands, which support a
variety of wildlife.

The City's history of industrial, commercial, and residential development resulted in an urban core offset by wooded
hillsides, a sprawling valley floor, undeveloped ridgelines, riparian corridors that extend into the City, and mature trees that help define the City’s character (City of Willits 1992).

Willit's City Mural
14 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 15 SECTION 3
SECTION 3
SECTION 3
SECTION 3 Developing
The Willits
Urban Forest
Management
Plan
Developing The Willits Urban Forest Management Plan | SECTION 3 The City of Willits was awarded a grant from the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) Urban and Community Forestry Program to complete the Urban Forest Management Plan (UFMP), inventory street and park trees, and plant and maintain trees in disadvantaged communities. The Community Development Department is the main City department responsible for the development of the UFMP, providing key insights into City practices, coordinating with internal and external stakeholders, and hosting community engagement events. The Public Works Department provided inventory support, City standard documents, and other data sets for analysis. The following section details the analysis, community engagement activities, and processes involved in developing the UFMP.

CITY OF WILLITS DEPARTMENTS
Community Development Department
• Developing the UFMP
• Providing key insights into City practices
• Coordinating with stakeholders
• Hosting community engagement events
Public Works Department
• Assisting with tree inventory, completed by Dudek
• Supporting with City standard documents
• Sharing data sets for analysis
Grant Awarded
Urban Forest
Management Plan
Tree Inventory
New Tree Planting and
Maintenance
£wM
4 URBAN FOREST
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 17 16 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

3.1Analysis of Current PracticesIn June 2020, the City began the process of developing the UFMP, which would include a thorough analysis of City management practices, policies, ordinances, and funding, to understand the deficiencies and strengths of its urban forest management program. The analysis of current practices was initially informed by reviewing City planning documents, including the Vision 2020: General Plan Revision and Safety Element Update; Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan; Willits Safe Routes to School Action Plan; Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan; and the Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study. It also included an analysis of City planning practices, tree ordinances, standard details, annual service data and budget levels.

3.2Stakeholder InterviewsUnderstanding the effectiveness of the urban forest management program was further informed by interviews with City staff, elected officials, and external stakeholders. The interviews explored the role each stakeholder had in influencing City tree management, clarified internal City procedures, and informed areas where the City could improve management of the urban forest. The list of City staff and stakeholders who participated in the UFMP interview process included the following: • Community Development Department
• Public Works Department • Engineering Division • Representatives from CalTrans • Main Street Business owner and longtime resident
• Landscape Contractor and longtime
resident

3.3Community Engagement In addition to the department interviews, input from residents and stakeholders helped to inform the analysis of City management practices and the development of guiding principles, goals, and objectives to reflect the values and priorities of the City and residents. Originally, the avenues for resident and stakeholder engagement were designed to occur both online and in-person. However, the City and State of California implemented restrictions on in-person gatherings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. In-person meetings were subsequently transferred to an online meeting format. The City held an online community meeting in February 2021 attended by 12 participants. To reach a larger audience of residents unable to attend the online meetings, the City implemented a survey that was distributed online via Facebook and an email newsletter. Hard copies of the survey were also made available SECTION 3 | Developing the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan for individuals who lacked access to a computer or preferred to hand write responses. Seventy-eight responses were recorded. Survey results could benefit from further engagement with stakeholders so participants reflect the diversity of the City. Specifically, there are few survey responses from residents who rent, live in apartments, speak a language other than English at home, or are younger than 60.

3.4Urban Forest Inventory and AnalysisThe consultant team conducted an inventory of City-managed trees in September 2020. The scope of the inventory included collecting tree location and arboricultural attribute information of City-owned trees within the City limits including public sidewalks, parkway strips, street medians, right-of-ways, parks, and other accessible City-owned property. The inventory was analyzed using sustainability metrics to determine the condition of trees and to understand what management practices will need to be improved to have the most meaningful impact on tree health and safety. The City’s entire urban forest (public and private property) was analyzed to determine the canopy cover extent, and the condition of trees using sustainability metrics. The City canopy cover and land use was derived from USFS LiDAR and other satellite spatial imagery by using an artificial intelligence learning model to classify what is a tree, shrub, grass, building, and other infrastructure, and then determine the differences in height between each classification. The analysis resulted in land use classifications of 16% tree canopy.

Developing the Willits Urban Forest Management Plan | SECTION 3 6 1
18 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 19 SECTION 4
SECTION 4
SECTION 4
SECTION 4
Key Findings
Key Findings | SECTION 4

4.1 Aging Tree Inventory
Much of the City’s inventory is aging and
mature, with 32% mature trees (22%
more mature trees than recommended
in urban forest literature) (Richards
1983). Only 20% of the inventory is
immature, which indicates the tree
inventory may not have a population
of newly planted trees to adequately
replace mature trees as they reach the
end of their life. At a minimum, the
City will need to replace trees as they
are removed to ensure a continuation
of environmental services. If the age
distribution continues without increased
tree planting, the City can expect the
tree’s environmental services to decline
as the population becomes senescent
and requires removal.

Willits’ City-owned trees may
not have a population of newly
planted trees to adequately
replace mature trees.

4.2 Budget Limitations
Public Works received $8,000 for
tree pruning in FY20/21, which
was insufficient to conduct regular
maintenance of the City-managed
tree inventory. This insufficient level
of funding has resulted in permitting
only reactive tree work when a tree
is identified with an elevated level or
risk to public safety. In the event of an
elevated level of tree risk, Public Works
staff must find the funds to mitigate the
concern in other budgets, make onetime requests to City Council, or identify limited special funding. With available
funds directed towards reducing
elevated tree risk when it is identified,
nothing remains to proactively prune
trees. This type of reactive maintenance
is more expensive than actively pruning
trees and has the potential to elevate
the risk associated with a tree by not
mitigating a defect in a timely manner.

4.3 Staffing Constraints
The Public Works Department is
responsible for managing the trees
in the public right-of-ways and in City
parks, in addition to managing all Cityowned properties, streets, sidewalks, parks, and the Willits Municipal Airport.

The Public Works Superintendent
oversees a construction specialist and
three maintenance workers to conduct
all public works requests, including
those related to trees such as pruning,
branch failures, and tree maintenance.

The City does not have an on-staff
arborist to assist in managing the
City tree population, and staff rely on
their own experience with trees when
making maintenance decisions. City
staff expressed that budget constraints,
vacant positions, and high workload
make it difficult to complete tree
maintenance. City Council is often
not able to provide the resources to
support hiring outside contractors to
perform tree work. The combination of
limited City staff and resources to hire
contractors has resulted in deferred and
reactionary maintenance of a mature
tree population.
0 M
$
20 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 21

4.4 Recreation Grove Park
More than 25% of the City’s tree
inventory is planted in Rec Grove Park.

Of these trees, nearly 90% are mature
valley oaks (Quercus lobata) with
varying health conditions and a site
history of tree failures. The health
condition and site history of the trees,
coupled with the frequency of use by
residents and the presence of existing
structures, suggest that some trees in
the park may have an elevated level of
risk. As of 2021, approximately one-third
of the trees remain unassessed for tree
risk. Understanding the risk associated
with trees in Rec Grove Park will give
City tree managers the information
needed to make decisions on investing
limited City resources. The initial costs
to complete the assessment can be
offset by prioritizing management
actions on the most urgent tree issues
to prevent the need for more costly
emergency tree work.

More than 25% of the City’s
tree inventory is planted in Rec
Grove Park.

4.5 Canopy Cover is Low
Despite the City’s location in a forested
area, canopy cover in Willits is relatively
low. The analysis of the City’s canopy
cover focused on the canopy cover
within the City’s developed footprint,
which was identified using the U.S.

Census Bureau urban area boundary.

Dense clusters of canopy cover are
concentrated along riparian corridors
that wind through the City and near
open space areas. Because the City
lacks available planting space within
its developed areas, Willits may need
to rely on private property owners
to plant trees in their own yards to
meet the City’s canopy cover goals.

However, throughout the UFMP process,
stakeholder interviews, and survey
results, mixed opinions were shared
by community members about City
involvement with private property.

Many political and social factors
contribute to these opinions, but fire
risk hazards were frequently addressed
as a main concern during stakeholder
interviews. As such, community
outreach and education efforts will be
key to increasing canopy cover.

4.6 Community Engagement/
Outreach
Residents place a high value on the
City’s trees, with 89% of public survey
respondents stating that they view trees
as either more important or equally
as important as other City-maintained
infrastructure. As the City plans to
increase canopy cover with predicted
changes in weather and climate, such
as drought and fire risk, it will need
to implement a community outreach
strategy to ensure residents understand
the importance of trees in the Willits
landscape. Approximately 82% of survey
respondents stated that educating the
community would have the most impact
towards achieving healthy trees. The
City may face declining canopy cover in
future years if it does not implement a
firesafe community education program.
89% of public survey
respondents state that
they view trees as either
more important or equally
as important as other Citymaintained infrastructure.

SECTION 4 | Key Findings

4.7 Tree Management Practices
Ninety-three trees are identified in the
tree inventory as having a priority 1 or 2
pruning need. Priority 1 pruning needs
include trees with hazardous deadwood,
hangers, or broken branches. Priority 2
pruning needs include trees identified
with dead, dying, diseased, or weakened
branches that are potential safety
hazards. The City should allocate funds
to address the maintenance needs
of these trees to mitigate against
potential limb failure. After this pruning
is complete the City should establish
a 5 to 7-year pruning cycle of the
289 trees identified in the priority 1
and 2, and large tree routine pruning
maintenance needs categories of the
City inventory. This would allow the City
to appropriately plan annual budgets
around a consistent number of trees
that require pruning (40 to 60 per year)
and reduce the potential for more costly
emergency tree work. If the City does
not prioritize the pruning of priority 1
and 2 trees it will most likely continue to
use most of its tree maintenance funds
on a limited number of emergency
situations.

4.8 Long Range Planning and
Policies
Many of the City’s long-range plans
aspire to increase tree plantings and
landscaping in the City by including
trees in development projects.

Redevelopment along Main Street
and City’s downtown area present
key opportunities to increase canopy
cover while adding aesthetic appeal
and creating an inviting pedestrian
environment downtown. Additionally, a
desire to increase safety for pedestrians
and bicyclists and encourage active
transportation presents another
opportunity for an injection of urban
trees. The City lacks strong policies and
ordinances that protect or require trees
in development projects. The adoption
of implementable ordinances supported
by robust code enforcement will require
support from City leadership and the
community.

The City lacks strong policies
and ordinances that protect or
require trees in development
projects.
4 Key Findings | SECTION 4
22 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 23 SECTION 5
SECTION 5
SECTION 5
SECTION 5
Urban
Forest Data

5.1 Status of the Urban Forest

5.1.1 Canopy Cover
Willits currently has a canopy cover of 16% within its developed area footprint (Figure 2).

CAL FIRE grant goals for the City include a 10% canopy cover increase by 2030, and a 35% increase by 2050, which would result in a total canopy cover of 18% and 22%, respectively.

Tree planting scenarios to achieve these goals have been calculated based on the size of trees planted. For instance, if the City elected to plant large canopy trees only, planting 76 50-foot-wide canopy trees per year until the year 2050 would achieve a 22% canopy cover (a 35% increase from existing conditions), assuming tree planting efforts begin in the year 2022.

Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5
Willits’s tree
inventory is
worth over
$3 Million
Total Canopy Percent Increase
from Existing Years to Goal Total Number of Trees by Canopy Spread 20 ft 35 ft 50 ft 75 ft
18% 10% 8 3819 1246 611 271
22% 35% 28 13366 4363 2138 950
Number of Trees to Plant per Year to reach goals by 2030 and 2050 477 156 76 34 24 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 25

5.1.1 Canopy Cover
Willits currently has a
canopy cover of 16%
within its developed
area footprint.

SECTION 5 | Urban Forest Data
Date: 6/23/2021 - Last saved by: bdokkestul - Path: Z:\Projects\j1269401\MAPDOC\DOCUMENT\CanopyAnalysis\Figure1_CanopyCover.mxd CanopyCover
WillitsUrbanForestManagementPlan
SOURCE:USGS2018,Bing(Accessed2021)
01,0002,000
n
Feet
WillitsCityBoundary
CensusTractBoundary
CanopyCover
FIGURE1
Service Annual Environmental Benefit Annual Environmental Impact Annual Economic Value Carbon Storage (carbon
held in tree) 527.7 tons
The carbon stored in the City’s urban
forest is equivalent to the carbon
emitted from 164 cars driven for 1 year.
$90,000
Carbon Sequestration
(carbon removed from
air)

4.96 tons
The carbon removed from the City’s
air by the urban forest is equivalent to
an average passenger vehicle driving
10,693 miles.
$846
Avoided Runoff 6,766 ft
3 This benefit is the equivalent to the 1.5
times the amount of water the average
American home uses in 1 year.
$452

5.1.2 Environmental Services/Economic Benefits
Willits’ tree inventory provides the following annual environmental services and benefits:

Sources: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and i-Tree Analysis (USFS 2020).

Sources: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and i-Tree Analysis (USFS 2020). Figure 2. Canopy Cover Willits’ tree inventory has the following financial value:

Value Description Asset Amount Per-Tree Value
Structural Tree replacement cost $3.05 Million $7,059
Functional Value based on the services
trees perform $90,463 $213
Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5
26 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 27

5.1.3 Species Diversity Summary
Willits' TOP 10 Genera

1. Quercus 2. Acer 3. Pyrus 4. Fraxinus 5. Sequoia

6. Ulmus 7. Pistacia 8. Platanus 9. Pinus 10. Sequioadendron Willits’ tree inventory consists of 425 trees,
composed of 16 families, 27 genera, and
41 species.
34%
5%
15%
5%
12%
3%
10%
2%
4%
1%
Sustainability Goal: No Genus Greater than 10% of Inventory Meets Goal Does Not Meet Goal SECTION 5 | Urban Forest Data Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5 Sustainability Goal: No Species greater than 5% of inventory

5.1.3 Species Diversity Summary
Willits' TOP 10 Species

1. Quercus lobata
Valley Oak

6. Acer buergerianum
Trident Maple
2 .Pyrus calleryana
Bradford Pear

7. Sequoia sempervirens
Coast redwood

3. Fraxinus latifolia
Oregon ash

8. Quercus kelloggii
Black oak

4. Acer rubrum
Red maple

9. Platanus occidentalis
American sycamore

5. Pistacia chinensis
Chinese pistache

10. Ulmus pumila
Siberian Elm
Meets Goal
Predicted to be heat and water sensitive
Does Not Meet Goal

29.1%

4.7%

11.5%

4.2%

7.5%

3.3%

7.3%

3.1%

5.1%

2.6%
28 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 29 39%

5.1.4 DBH/ Age Distribution Summary
Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5
Sustainability Goal:
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
Age Distribution
of the Willits Tree
Mature Inventory
Middle
-aged
Young
Immature
32%
20%
9%
Recommended age distribution of trees.

5.1.5 Health Composition
Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5
Condition Number of
Trees Percent
Very good 63 15%
Good 122 29% 86%
Fair 180 42%
Poor 53 12%
Dead 6 1% 14%
Critical 1 0.5%
Total 425 100%
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020)
I
I I I
30 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 31 SECTION 5 | Urban Forest Data

5.1.6 Relative Performance Index Summary
The relative performance index (RPI) identifies which species are doing well and which many be having issues. Trees with an RPI of 1 or higher are performing as well or better than the entire inventory.

Relative Performance Index of the top 10 species in Willits’ Inventory:

Relative Performance Index (RPI) Goal: Top 6 Species Have an RPI Score of 1.0 or Higher Rank Botanical name Common Name RPI
City Inventory 0.44
1 Quercus lobata Valley oak 0.20
2 Pyrus calleryana Bradford pear 1.03
3 Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 0.50
4 Acer rubrum Red maple 1.85
5 Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache 1.88
6 Acer buergerianum Trident maple 1.72
7 Sequoia sempervirens Redwood 2.30
8 Quercus kelloggii Black oak 1.48
9 Platanus occidentalis American sycamore 1.94
10 Ulmus pumila Siberian elm 1.46
Sustainability Goal: Meets Goal Does Not Meet Goal
Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5

5.1.7 Importance Values Summary
The importance value of tree species combines the percentage of the species in the population of City-owned trees with its corresponding percentage of leaf area.

Botanical name Common Name Importance Value
Quercus lobata Valley oak 74.1
Pyrus calleryana Bradford pear 15.7
Sequoia sempervirens Coast redwood 14.2
Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 13.7
Acer rubrum Red maple 11.3
Platanus x occidentalis American sycamore 9.6
Quercus kelloggii Black oak 5.8
Acer buergerianum Trident maple 5.7
Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache 5.7
Ulmus americana American elm 5.6
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and I-Tree (USFS 2020) 32 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 33 Budget Line Items FY 16/17 FY 17/18 FY 18/19 FY 19/20 FY 20/21 Average Tree pruning, removal, and arborist
reviews $8,000 $12,000 $5,000 $8,000 $8,000 $8,200
Irrigation & miscellaneous $4,100 $4,100 $4,100 $2,200 $2,200 $ 3,340 Other contracts* $17,967 $27,856 $7,000 $8,000 $6,000 $13,364 Willits per-tree spending $29.18
SECTION 5 | Urban Forest Data

5.2 City Management of the Tree Program

5.2.1 Funding
The funding Willits receives could equate to an average annual spending of $29.18 per tree if Willits was able to implement a preventative maintenance program for trees. However, under the current management system, all annual funding is used to address existing safety issues on relatively few trees, and not for preventative tree maintenance. *Not specifically allocated to trees, but a portion of these funds are used as emergency funds should public safety be affected by trees.

Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5

5.2.2 Staff
The City has 0.75 FTEs that are responsible for supporting tree related tasks. The number of FTEs in Willits is lower than the average number for a city of Willits’ size (3.3 FTEs; Hauer and Peterson 2016a). The Department of Public Works’ duties as they pertain to tree maintenance is limited by equipment, staff labor hours, and budget. This combination has resulted in deferred and reactionary maintenance of an aging tree population and limits the ability of the City to complete tree-related tasks.

Position Type Number of positions Number of FTEs
Maintenance Workers Laborer 3 0.45
Construction Specialist Project Lead 1 0.15
Public Works Superintendent Management/Supervisor 1 0.15 Total 5 .75
34 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 35 SECTION 5 | Urban Forest Data

5.2.3.1 Tree Maintenance
Willits does not currently have a set pruning cycle. Based on the inventory, the following pruning needs were identified:

Priority 1 Prune, 26 Trees: These trees require trimming to remove broken or hanging limbs, hazardous deadwood, and dead, dying, or diseased limbs or leaders greater than four inches in diameter.

Priority 2 Prune, 67 Trees: These trees have dead, dying, diseased, or weakened branches between two and four inches in diameter and are potential safety hazards.

Large Tree Routine Prune, 196 Trees: These trees require routine horticultural pruning to correct structural problems or growth patterns, which would eventually obstruct traffic or interfere with utility wires or buildings. Trees in this category are large enough to require bucket truck access or manual climbing.

Small Tree Routine Prune, 41 Trees: These trees require routine horticultural pruning to correct structural problems or growth patterns, which would eventually obstruct traffic or interfere with utility wires or buildings. These trees are small growing, mature trees that can be evaluated and pruned from the ground.

Training Prune, 28 Trees: Young, large-growing trees that are still small must be pruned to correct or eliminate weak, interfering, or objectionable branches to minimize future maintenance requirements. These trees, up to 20 feet in height, can be worked with a pole-pruner by a person standing on the ground. 55%
11%
8%
7%
19%
Priority 1 Prune
Priority 2 Prune
Large Tree Routine Prune
Small Tree Routine Prune
Training Prune
Urban Forest Data | SECTION 5

5.2.3.2 Trees Planted
Due to limited resources, all tree planting
activities are supported by grant funds. The
City was awarded a CalFire grant to plant
165 trees (50 street and 115 park trees).

Additional tree planting will occur on an
ad hoc basis to replace a removed tree
but otherwise the City has no formal tree
planting program.

5.2.3.3 Establishment Care
Willits uses a combination of bubbler
irrigation and watering trucks to water trees
planted for its CAL FIRE grant project. Once
grant funds are spent, future development
activities will need to consider watering,
tree species selection and placement,
and funding to install irrigation for newly
planted trees.
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36 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 37 In terms of public trees, to what degree would you support the creation of a tree protection ordinance?
SECTION 6
SECTION 6
SECTION 6
SECTION 6
Community
Engagement

6.1 Public Survey
An online survey was created to identify the public’s perception and understanding of the City’s trees, and to offer a space for public feedback as the City develops its UFMP. The 22-question survey was open between March 7, 2021 and April 20, 2021. There were 79 responses collected.

Community Engagement | SECTION 6
96% of survey
respondents
support protecting
public trees
59% Strongly support
18% Somewhat Support
18% Support
1% Somewhat oppose
3% Oppose
38 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 39 SECTION 6 | Community Engagement Community Engagement | SECTION 6 What rating would you give the health and appearance of public space street trees in Willlits? Public space street trees are defined as trees in the right-of-way, in parks, and other publicly owned land.

In terms of private property trees, to what degree would you support the creation of a tree protection ordinance? How important do you think trees are compared to other
infrastructure like streets, sidewalks, water, sewer, traffic signals, lighting, etc.? 9% Excellent
20% Support
37% Strongly support
25% Good
29% Somewhat support
53% Fair
23% Trees are more important
66% Trees are equally important
11% Trees are not as important
5% Somewhat oppose
13% Poor
5% Oppose
4% Strongly Oppose

6.2 Community Meeting & Stakeholder Interviews
The City held a virtual community meeting on February 11, 2021 via the online Zoom platform, which was attended by 10 community members, Councilmembers Greta Kane and Saprina Rodriguez, two City staff, and three members of the consultant team. Two additional interviews were conducted with long-time residents and business owners in Willits. Comments were analyzed to determine major community themes, values, and priorities that were expressed for the City’s urban forest.

Tree Maintenance
• Neighborhoods on the west side of town have many mature trees below utility lines, which have been trimmed into a “v”, resulting in an aesthetically displeasing appearance • Typically trees in the parkway strip are not properly maintained • Concerns regarding how the City will fund additional maintenance • Lack of/poor maintenance of City trees impacts public perception of trees Tree-infrastructure conflicts • Many trees in the parkway strip have resulted road/sidewalk damage, particularly along School Street near the intersection with West Commercial.

Areas lacking trees
• Highway 20
• Downtown areas
• Southern portion of the City, e.g., Harrah’s Manor
• Trail behind Haehl Creek Court subdivision
Community education/
outreach
• Educational outreach is needed for property owners explaining proper tree pruning/ maintenance practices and “right tree, right place” concepts to reduce or avoid damage Increasing Canopy Cover
• Due to minimal available public land, increasing canopy cover seems to fall primarily on private property owners
• The City should consider a planting requirement in new development as well as follow up maintenance requirements to ensure survival
Species diversity • Desire for native treeds
• Oak trees in Rec Grove Park are highly valued
Vision • Natural setting (native trees) in riparian areas expanded into the City What is the best way for the City to communicate with
you about the urban forest and its management?
36% Social Media
29% Email
19% City-mailed newsletter
9% City website
3% Text message
1% Phone call
o 3% Other
40 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 41 SECTION 7
SECTION 7
SECTION 7
SECTION 7
Recommendations
Recommendations | SECTION 7
Section 1: Urban Forest Management Practices
Recommendation Discussion

1.1. Continue to seek external
funding sources for tree planting
and establishment care projects.

There is limited space to plant new trees on streets and parks in Willits and the City is approaching a 100% stocking rate. While new trees will need to be continually planted, the City would benefit from planting new trees when grants and other outside sources can cover tree planting and establishment care costs. This would allow the City to focus resources on maintenance activities to preserve the existing inventory and canopy cover. Appendix H of the Technical Assessment contains potential funding opportunities the City can consider pursuing.

1.2. Adopt the Recommended Tree
Species List.

The recommended species list found in Appendix B of the Technical Assessment provides the City a comprehensive list of trees that will be adapted to changing climate conditions, maintain species diversity levels, and meet various spacing restrictions. These species should be incorporated into all City planting efforts and promoted to property owners for residential and private property planting.

1.3. Create opportunities for
community members to provide
establishment care to newly planted
trees.

One possible avenue for the City to increase tree maintenance activities with limited resources is to have community members participate in establishment care activities. These activities would be in addition to maintenance funded through a grant or other outside source. This could include community-wide volunteer opportunities to water, weed, and care for trees on commercial corridors like Main St. It could also include opportunities for residents to adopt newly planted trees and commit to providing annual care.

1.4. Correct Defects of Trees
Identified as Priority 1 and 2
Pruning Needs.

Trees rated as priority 1 and 2 pruning needs have defects that could present an elevated level of risk to the community. These trees should be prioritized within the City budget and the work should be prioritized for completion.

1.5. Establish a Regular Pruning
Cycle of Large Trees.

The City is inefficiently using its limited resources by deferring maintenance and reacting to tree emergencies. After the City addresses the immediate priority 1 and 2 pruning needs, the next step is to continually assess and prune trees on a 5-7-year cycle. This will help to limit tree emergencies, maintain a safer tree inventory, increase the number of trees annually pruned, and have a predictable annual budget need.

1.6. Annually Complete A Level 1
Risk Assessment of City Managed
Trees.

Annually completing a level 1 risk assessment of City managed trees will help to identify any immediate maintenance or pruning needs. If trees are identified to have a significant defect, then a level 2 risk assessment can be performed to assess the level of risk and provide recommendations to lower the level of risk.
42 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 43 SECTION 7 | Recommendations Recommendations | SECTION 7 Section 1: Urban Forest Management Practices (Continued) Recommendation Discussion

1.7. Monitor Federal, State, and County
Alerts for Invasive Pests and Pathogens.

Willits currently experiences a low level of threats from invasive pests and pathogens. By closely monitoring alerts by USDA Animal Plant Health inspection Service Plant Protection and Quarantine, California Department of Food & Agriculture, and Mendocino County Ag Commissioner/Weights & Measures, the City can stay informed on when they may be impacted from an infestation and collaborate with the appropriate agency on an integrated strategy to limit tree loss.

1.8. Establish an Urban Forest Advisory
Committee (UFAC).

A UFAC would help to strengthen the relationship between the City and community on tree related issues and provide a structured format for dialogue. Establishing a UFAC can also be an important tool for ensuring public participation in the implementation of the UFMP strategic plan.

General Plan/Municipal Code

1.9. Adopt an ordinance clarifying tree care
and liability responsibility between private
property owners and the City.

Responsibility should be based on the planting location.

1.10. Adopt a parking lot shade tree
ordinance requiring 50% shading
of hardscape within 15 years of lot
development.

Land Use Implementation Measure 1.340 calls for strengthening the Zoning Ordinance to include a requirement for a ratio of trees per parking stalls, which has not yet been implemented.

1.11. Adopt minimum landscaping
requirements that include minimum
tree planting and tree replacement
requirements specific to each land use type
in the City.

Land Use Implementation Measure 1.340 calls for strengthening the Zoning Ordinance to include a requirement for minimum landscaping requirements for each land use category. Currently the City has adopted minimum standards for landscaping industrially and commercially zoned lands (Zoning Code Chapter 17.60). However, there are no minimum tree planting requirements nor has the City adopted standards for other land uses.

1.12. Adopt minimum tree planting
requirements for roadway improvement
projects.

Circulation Implementation Measure 2.380 calls for the provision of additional landscaping, including street trees, along roadways. While this is being implemented, there are no specific requirements for tree planting.

Section 1: Urban Forest Management Practices (Continued) Recommendation Discussion

1.13. Adopt an ordinance requiring the use of recycled
water in roadway landscaping as well as commercial,
industrial development and public land uses.

Circulation Implementation Measure 2.380 calls for the use reclaimed water in roadway landscaping. This requirement should be extended to additional land use types where appropriate and feasible.

1.14. Involve a licensed arborist in site development
plan review to ensure tree requirements are met.

Landscape plan review should be conducted by qualified personnel to ensure trees are appropriately selected, sited and provided with growing conditions conducive to tree success.

1.15. Adopt implementation procedures for strict code
enforcement of the policies of the UFMP.

Implementation of policies, plans, and standards for tree management is dependent on actionable code enforcement by the City. Successful code enforcement may require additional funding for the urban forest program.

Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan/Safe Routes to School Action Plan

1.16. Prioritize the addition of trees along bicycle and pedestrian routes for improved safety and enhanced
bicycle/pedestrian experience.

Trees and landscape planters can greatly enhance perceived and actual safety for pedestrians/bicyclists while also providing shade and creating a more pleasant experience that encourages active transportation.

1.17. Revise the prioritization score for planting trees and other features along bicycle routes to be given a
higher score for improvements to safety.

Trees and landscape planters can greatly enhance perceived and actual safety for pedestrians/bicyclists by resulting in traffic calming as well as serving as a physical buffer between vehicular traffic and people.
44 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 45 SECTION 7 | Recommendations Recommendations | SECTION 7 Section 1: Urban Forest Management Practices (Continued) Recommendation Discussion
Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan/Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study

1.18. Refer to UFMP planting standards and specifications when planning improvement projects along Main Street.

Plans for redevelopment of Main Street include improving the pedestrian environment through the addition of amenities, including street trees.

1.19. The City should further consult with CalTrans and explore funding opportunities for transportation and pedestrian improvements that include tree plantings along South Main Street (Highway 20).

South Main Street has been identified as having narrow sidewalks and lacking trees and shade which contribute to an unpleasant pedestrian environment. The City does not currently have jurisdiction over South Main Street (Highway 20), which is a CalTrans right-of-way.

1.20. Conduct educational outreach to provide residents and business owners with guidance on wildfire safe landscaping and defensible space, as well as species selection for resilient and fire adapted tree species to encourage canopy growth while maintaining wildfire safety.

Residents have expressed concerns about increasing wildfire risk by planting trees on their property. This presents an opportunity to conduct educational outreach on implementing fire safe landscaping and defensible space while retaining canopy cover to the extent feasible.

Canopy Cover

1.21. Achieve a 10% increase in canopy cover by 2030 and a 30% increase in canopy cover by 2050, for a total canopy cover of 22%.

Willits should aim to increase canopy cover within the developed footprint of the City. This canopy goal is a realistic goal for Willits and is in line with CAL FIRE goals for the City. Given limited available planting space, the City will need to rely on and incentivize private property owners to increase tree cover on private property, which will require robust community outreach and education.

Section: 2. Status of the Urban Forest
Recommendation Discussion

2.1. Maintain an inventory that contains no more
than 10% of any one species, 20% of any one
genus, or 30% of any one family.

Prioritizing species selection from diverse species, genera, and families will help increase the urban forest’s overall resilience to threats.

2.2. Select replacement species that are climate
adapted.

Climate change is predicted to cause substantial negative impacts to commonly planted street tree species in California. Planting species that are well suited to predicted climate changes will help preserve the City’s urban forest in future years.

2.3. Prioritize park trees for arborist review and
implementation of recommendations.

The City’s oldest and largest trees primarily exist in parks. These trees should be prioritized for arborist review to identify which should be slated for removal and replanted.

2.4. Plan for removals and replacements to
maintain canopy cover.

Because much of the City’s inventory is aging, at the end of its life, and/or have significant defects, the City should plan to for a phased removal and replacement of trees that will maintain canopy cover levels over streets and parks.

2.5. Educate community members on what makes
a fire safe community, including tree maintenance
and species selection to ease tree planting
hesitancy among residents.

The City lacks available planting space to increase its tree canopy, and will need to depend on its residents to plant trees on private property. Many residents are hesitant to plant because of fire risk, and instituting an intentional fire-safe public education campaign will help residents understand the need for increased canopy cover, and see the many ways to develop a fire-safe landscape.

2.6. Actively maintain trees to reduce the
increased costs of deferred maintenance.

The UFMP shows that it is significantly more expensive to defer tree maintenance during times of economic downturn, than to proactively manage trees year-by-year. By allocating funds to actively maintain trees, the City can increase the number of trees maintained on annual basis and reduce the potential for unexpected tree emergencies. 46 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 47 SECTION 7 | Recommendations Recommendations | SECTION 7 Section: 3. Rec Grove Park
Recommendation Discussion

3.1. Immediate arborist review to understand the
risk associated with trees in the park.

Identify the trees that have not been reviewed by an arborist, and immediately complete the arborist review process for those trees at the Rec Grove. Work with the arborist to identify trees that should be prioritized for removal and create a year-by-year plan for removal implementation. Use the schedule to justify funding requests to City Council on the grounds of public safety/essential operations.

3.2. Identify new species for planting at the Rec
Grove.

Tree removals should be replaced by new trees. The new tree species that are selected should be climate and fire adapted, site appropriate, and utility friendly.

3.3. Improve drainage at the Rec Grove
The flood plain status and irrigated landscape in which the trees are planted contributes to shallow rooting behaviors. Consider reprogramming irrigation systems to water with less frequency if the grass can tolerate it. Apply mulch around tree roots to prevent over irrigation.

3.4. Engage community members in the process.

Due to the declining health and aging tree population, the trees at the Rec Grove may look significantly different in 10-15 years. Because the Rec Grove is highly valued by community members, the City holds a unique opportunity to engage community members, business owners, and city officials in a process of tree selection and planting.

The City should conduct this process openly and transparently.

3.5. Institute a public outreach campaign.

Based on the removal plan, the City has an opportunity to educate community members on the process of tree removal, the reasons behind removal recommendations, and the natural lifecycle of trees.

Section 4: Community Engagement
Recommendation Discussion

4.1. Publish urban forest program updates
in newspapers that are read by community
members
Newspaper publications emerged as a preferred source of community knowledge, events, and Willits news. Stakeholders mentioned the quality and content of newspapers as relevant, timely, and accurate. The City should prioritize publishing notices of events, updates, and community meetings related to the urban forest, as residents are more likely to see it and potentially get involved.

4.2. Increase outreach efforts to obtain input from
demographics that represent the City of Willits.

To fully understand the City’s challenges and opportunities to implementing the UFMP, additional outreach should be conducted to reach more residents who are under 60 and renters (both residential and commercial).

4.3. Develop a social media, branding, and
outreach strategy that will help propel the UFMP
forward.

Community members mentioned Facebook as an important medium to receive City updates. By using Willits’ existing online presence, creating a consistent UFMP social media plan and branding strategy will help increase UFMP brand recognition and inform community members of UFMP progress.

4.4. Pursue Tree City USA recognition
To align the UFMP with City Council priorities, the City could pursue Tree City USA recognition. Standards include: 1. A tree board or department; 2. A tree care ordinance;

3. A community forestry program with an annual budget of at least $2/capita; and 4.

Arbor Day observance and proclamation.
48 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 49 SECTION 7 | Recommendations Recommendations | SECTION 7 Benefits of Trees
in Our Urban
Environment
stormwater management
increased biodiversity
active & healthy communities
carbon sequestration & carbon storage
reduced stress & improvements to mental health
increased property values
better air quality & lower asthma rates
energy savings & temperature regulation
50 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 51 SECTION 8
SECTION 8
SECTION 8
SECTION 8
Strategic Plan

8.1 Guiding Principles, Goals,
Objectives
Every City is unique in the values held by residents and City staff, and how those values are reflected in planning the future. The Willits UFMP is one method by which the City demonstrates its values, and institutes forward thinking policies and practices that will have a positive and long lasting impact on residents, visitors, and business owners. This process begins by defining the guiding principles that outline the City’s specific values and how its urban forest will help further promote those values. The guiding principles will be supported by the specific steps the City will take as defined by the urban forest goals and objectives. Together, the guiding principles, goals, and objectives will prioritize how the City progresses towards creating a sustainable urban forest and climate change-resilient community.

The following are draft guiding principles, goals, and objectives that require further review with City staff, residents, and stakeholders. These guiding principles, goals, and objectives are considered a catalyst for creating a resilient urban forest that will provide services to the community for generations.

Strategic Plan | SECTION 8
Vision
The City of Willits urban forest will serve as a Gateway to the Redwoods and be a healthy, equitable, and sustainably funded resource that provides ecological, social, and economic %WILLITS benefits to all Willits residents.

URBAN FOREST

MANAGEMENT PLAN
52 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 53 SECTION 8 | Strategic Plan Strategic Plan | SECTION 8
Strategic Plan
Guiding Principles Definition
Resilience to climate
change
The City will seek to protect neighborhoods from
the adversities of climate change to inform the
development of standards and best management
practices that lead to a sustainable urban forest.

Expand the urban forest The City will grow canopy cover to maximize the environmental, economic, social and health benefits of
the urban forest.

Protect and preserve the
urban forest
City polices and ordinances will contribute to large,
healthy trees on both private and public property.

Sufficient resources for the
urban forest
The City will provide the financial and human resources to sustainably manage the urban forest.

Goal #1
Urban Forest
Sustainability
Definition: Willits will
have a sustainable urban
forest that is adapted
to climate change and
provides widespread
canopy cover throughout
the City.

Strategy

1.1 Tree planting activities will promote a sustainable urban forest.

Objectives

1.1a
Develop criteria for selecting tree species to plant on City managed streets, parks, and other public and open spaces that prioritizes trees known to be adapted to changing climate conditions such as extreme heat and drought.

1.1b The City tree inventory will comprise no more than 10% of one species, 20% of one genus, or 30% of one family.

1.1c Continue to plant new trees to ensure a continuum of age diversity within the City managed tree inventory.

1.1d Tree planting projects in a City park will prioritize the use of local and regional native tree species.

1.1e Prioritize planting trees rated by Water Use Classification of Landscape Species (WUCOLS) as very low and low water users.

1.1f Evaluate Willits wildfire risk with a focus on residential properties in the wildland urban interface.

Strategy

1.2 Increase tree canopy cover across the City.

Objectives

1.2a Achieve 22% Citywide canopy cover by 2050.

1.2b
Develop an annual tree planting plan for both public and private property based on the number of trees needed to reach 22% canopy cover. Total trees planted will not include trees that are required as replacement for a removed tree.

1.2c Evaluate and adjust the annual tree planting goal every 5 years to ensure the City is progressing towards canopy cover goals.

1.2d Work with local tree nurseries to ensure tree species and quantities are available to meet City tree planting goals.
table header
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54 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 55 SECTION 8 | Strategic Plan Strategic Plan | SECTION 8
Goal #2
Tree
Management
Definition: The City and
community members will
appropriately manage
and maintain trees to
ensure a vibrant, healthy
urban forest.

Goal #3
Funding the
Urban Forest
Definition: Willits’ urban
forest program will be
sustainably funded
and managed through
allocation of City funds
and pursuing grant
opportunities.

Strategy

2.1 Conduct regular tree maintenance based on tree inventory information that is kept up to date.

Objectives

2.1a Maintain the City tree inventory in perpetuity, with each tree in the inventory assessed on a regular cycle.

2.1b Annually complete a level 1 risk assessment of City managed trees.

2.1c Establish a regular pruning cycle for large trees.

2.1d Actively maintain trees to avoid the increased costs of deferred maintenance.

2.1e Establish an urban forest advisory committee (UFAC) to strengthen the relationship between the City and community on tree related issues.

2.1f Correct defects of trees identified as priority 1 and 2 pruning needs.

2.1g
Inspect trees for signs of decline, insect infestation, or pathogen infection. Collect samples from suspect trees and submit to a diagnostic laboratory or the Agriculture Commissioner’s Office of Mendocino County.

Develop an appropriate long-term maintenance plan or strategy to remove and replace failing species. Each tree to be evaluated every 5-7 years.

Strategy

2.2 Ensure all City tree management activities and design standards reflect the most current understanding of urban forest sustainability.

Objective

2.2a City tree management practices should implement current industry standards as defined by the International Society of Arboriculture, American National Standards Institute, and current research.

2.2b
Develop and adopt alternative design standards for sidewalk installation and repair that minimizes conflicts between trees, sidewalks, and other infrastructure by considering and providing sufficient growing space for trees.

Strategy

2.3 Community members and private property owners will understand their role in growing and maintaining the urban forest.

Objective

2.3a Educate community members on their responsibility to maintain trees adjacent their property.

2.3b Educate private property owners on proper tree pruning practices.

2.3c Create opportunities for community members to provide establishment care to newly planted trees.

Strategy

3.1 Develop a plan to annually provide funding to the urban forest program so the City can sustainably manage the tree inventory, engage the community, and implement policies.

Objectives

3.1a
Define funding scenarios for tree maintenance to determine how much funding would be required to properly maintain: 1) existing trees in City right-of-way areas, 2) all street trees and park trees in the City inventory, 3) trees at all City facilities.

3.1b Continue to seek grant and other outside funding for the planting of new trees, watering, and establishment care.

3.1c
Evaluate the most cost-effective method for the City to perform a tree risk and health assessment of Rec Grove Park that results in recommendations for tree maintenance, removals, and planting opportunities.

3.1d Allocate resources to the structural pruning of young trees.

3.1e
Develop partnerships with other public agencies, such as CalTrans, Agriculture Commissioner’s Office of Mendocino County, CAL FIRE, California Department of Food and Agriculture, California Natural Resources Agency, and Regional Water Boards, to help direct public development projects and resources toward goals of the UFMP.
56 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 57 SECTION 8 | Strategic Plan Strategic Plan | SECTION 8
Goal #4
Community
Engagement
Definition: Willits will
engage the community
to ensure an equitable
urban forest that provides
benefits and services to
all community members.

Goal #5
Planning and
Development
Definition: The City
will have policies and
ordinances that support
the urban forest priorities,
protect trees, generate
funding for the urban
forest program, and
contribute to large,
healthy trees on private
and public property.

Strategy

4.1 Ensure the demographics of the City are represented by the community stakeholders who participate in guiding the development of the urban forest.

Objectives

4.1a Establish and maintain partnerships with community-based organizations that are inclusive of the demographics of the City.

4.1b Prioritize areas with low canopy cover and public health concerns for new tree plantings.

4.1c
Develop outreach and education programs directed toward under-represented communities, renters, non-English speakers, Native Americans, and other minority groups, informing the community on the value of trees and the role community members play in maintaining the urban forest.

Strategy

4.2 Develop an education and outreach program that will help propel the UFMP forward.

Objectives

4.2a Create social media content (for Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram) to share information about the UFMP and the City’s urban forest priorities.

4.2b Publish urban forest program updates in local newspapers and other media outlets.

4.2c Create a website for the urban forest program and use it as a resource to update community members about new initiatives, educational programs, and outreach events.

4.2d
Provide residents and business owners with guidance on wildfire safe landscaping and defensible space, as well as species selection for resilient and fire adapted tree species to encourage canopy growth while maintaining wildfire safety.

Strategy

4.3 Pursue Tree City USA recognition.

Objectives

4.3a Create a tree board or department.

4.3b Set tree management policies for a tree care ordinance.

4.3c Fund the urban forest program with an annual budget of at least $2/capita.

4.3d Host an Arbor Day observance and proclamation event.

Strategy

5.1 Establish and clarify tree policies and ordinances to better protect and preserve trees.

Objectives

5.1a
Adopt an ordinance clarifying tree care and liability responsibility between private property owners and the City. Responsibility should be based on the planting location. Some variations in responsibility may occur, for example in situations where tree canopy overhangs the public right of way and must be pruned by the City for public safety.

5.1b Evaluate the feasibility to adopt a tree protection ordinance that includes standards for protection, removal fees/fines, and application permit requirements for trees on private property.

5.1c Adopt a parking lot shade tree ordinance requiring 50% shading of hardscape within 15 years of lot development.

5.1d Adopt minimum landscaping requirements that include minimum tree planting and tree replacement requirements specific to each land use type in the City.

5.1e Involve a licensed arborist in site development plan review to ensure tree requirements are met.

Strategy

5.2 City planning and development will contribute to increasing tree canopy cover.

Objectives

5.2a
Align City planning documents with the goals, standards, and recommendations of the UFMP.

Reference the UFMP for strategies to include trees and tree planting requirements when projects under the City’s long-range plans are implemented.

5.2b Adopt implementation procedures for strict code enforcement of the policies recommended by the UFMP.

5.2c Ensure trees are incorporated into the beginning of all City led long-term development plans and capital improvement projects to contribute to canopy cover goals.

5.2d Adopt minimum tree planting requirements for roadway improvement projects.

5.2e Further consult with CalTrans and explore funding opportunities for transportation and pedestrian improvements that include tree plantings along South Main Street (Highway 20). 58 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 59 SECTION 9
SECTION 9
SECTION 9
SECTION 9
Monitoring Plan

9.1 Vibrant Cities Lab
Assessment
It is recommended that the City use the Vibrant Cities Lab Community Assessment and Goal-Setting Tool to monitor the implementation of the UFMP. The tool is used as an assessment to define the City’s current state of a specific area of urban forest sustainability. The user decides what the City’s current state of the metric is, and then sets where the goal metric should be.

Each metric is assigned a point value, and the City is assigned a “Total Current Score” and a “Gap Score,” or how far off the current state is from the desired goal. A city that has a gap score between 20 to 40 is not far from achieving the goals of its urban forest program. Conversely, gap scores of 40+ indicates that a City is still implementing programs and policies to close the gap and develop a sustainable urban forest.

Willits’ first assessment was conducted on June 21, 2021, by Community Development staff and the consultant team. The table below reflects the results from the first assessment, which set the baseline for the City’s “Total Current Score” at its preUFMP metrics. Based on the first assessment, the City has a current rating of -15. The City’s UFMP monitoring plan should be based around the Vibrant Cities Lab Community Assessment and Goal Setting Tool and be retaken each year to track, measure, and highlight progress. The assessment can also be used to demonstrate successes and justify additional funding asks to City Council. Since the City first took the assessment, several of the responses that had significant gaps such as the lack of a UFMP (5) and a City inventory (5), have already been achieved.

Monitoring Plan | SECTION 9
60 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 61 SECTION 9 | Monitoring Plan Monitoring Plan | SECTION 9 Category Current Rating Goal Rating Gap
Canopy cover
The existing canopy cover
for entire municipality
is <50% of the desired
canopy.
-1 The existing canopy is >75%-100% of desired. 2 3
Inventory &
assessment
methodology
No inventory. -1
Systematic comprehensive inventory system of entire urban forest – with information tailored to users and supported by mapping in municipality-wide GIS
system. Provides for change analysis.
4 5
No assessment. -1 Low-resolution and/or point-based 3 4 Publicly owned trees No information. -1 Complete GIS tree inventory that includes detailed tree condition and risk ratings. 4 5
Publicly owned natural
areas
No information. -1 Level and type of public use documented. 2 3 Private property trees No information. -1 Bottom-up sample-based assessment, as well as basic aerial view 2 3 Relative performance
index by species No information. -1 Half of the six most common species have higher RPI scores than the average of all species in the community 2 3 Use of native
vegetation
No coordinated focus on
native vegetation. -1
Use of native species is encouraged on a project-appropriate basis in all areas;
invasive species are recognized and discouraged on public and private lands
2 3
Align municipal
departments
Informal teams among
departments and
agencies communicate
regularly and collaborate
on a project-specific basis.
2 Informal teams among departments and agencies communicate regularly and collaborate on a project-specific basis. 2 0 Engage residents
in planning and
implementation
Little or no citizen
involvement or
neighborhood action.
-1
Proactive outreach and coordination efforts by municipality and NGO partners
resulting in widespread citizen involvement and structured engagement among
diverse neighborhood groups.
4 5
Category Current Rating Goal Rating Gap
Environmental equity
Tree planting and
outreach is not
determined equitably by
canopy cover or need for
benefits.
-1
Equitable planting and outreach at the neighborhood level is guided by strong
resident involvement in low canopy/high need areas. Residents participate actively in
identifying needs for their neighborhoods, planning,
implementation and monitoring
4 5
Trees acknowledged
as vital community
resource
Trees generally
recognized as important
and beneficial.
1 Trees widely acknowledged as providing environmental, social, and economic
services – resulting in some action or advocacy in support of the urban forest.
2 1
Engage large private
landowners and
institutions
Large private landholders
are generally uninformed
about urban forest issues
and opportunities.
-1
Municipality educates landowners, provides technical assistance, sets goals and
provides incentives for managing resources in accordance with plan.
1 2
All utilities work with
municipality, employ
best management
practices
No utility consideration
of the health of the urban
forest resource.
-1
Utilities are included in informal municipal teams that communicate regularly and
collaborate on a project-specific basis.
3 4
Green industry
embraces goals, high
standards
Little or no cooperation
among segments of green
industry or awareness
of municipality-wide
urban forest goals and
objectives.
-1
Some cooperation among green industry as well as general awareness and
acceptance of municipality-wide goals and objectives.
1 2
Develop urban forest
management plan
No urban forest
management plan -1
Community adapted a city-wide canopy goal as official policy, based on best available canopy data, and scaled from community to neighborhood level.
2 3
62 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 63 SECTION 9 | Monitoring Plan Monitoring Plan | SECTION 9 Category Current Rating Goal Rating Gap
Cooperative
planning with other
municipalities
Municipalities have no
interaction with each
other or the broader
region. No regional
planning or coordination
on urban forestry.
-1
Widespread regional cooperation resulting in development of regional urban forestry
strategy
4 5
Forestry plan
integrated into other
municipal plans
Urban forestry plan
mentions how it could
meet other municipal
objectives or inform other
planning efforts.
-1
Once completed, urban forestry planning team works with other agencies to align
current and future objectives.
2 3
Urban forestry
program capacity
Lack of personnel and/
or adequate equipment
severely limits needed
maintenance. Few
resources, if any available
to achieve new goals.
-1
Team has capacity in terms of trained staff and equipment to achieve many of the
goals of the urban forest management plan.
2 3
Municipality-wide
urban forestry funding
Ad hoc funding for
emergency, reactive
management.
1 Funding sufficient for some proactive management based on urban forest
management plan.
2 1
Growing site suitability
Appropriate tree species
are considered in site
selection
1 All trees planted in sites with adequate soil quality and quantity, with sufficient growing space and overall site conditions to achieve their genetic potential and thus provide maximum ecosystem services
4 3
Tree establishment and
maintenance
Some tree planting and
establishment occurs,
but with limited overall
municipality-wide
planning and postplanting care.
-1
Comprehensive tree establishment plan provides concrete guidance on most of the following criteria: site selection, size, age class, diversity of species, native plant choice, planting protocols, and young tree care.
4 5
Category Current Rating Goal Rating Gap
Management of
publicly owned natural
areas
No natural areas
management plans or
implementation in effect.
-1
Only reactive management to facilitate public use, e.g. hazard abatement, trail
maintenance
1 2
Policies that foster
good urban forestry on
private lands
No tree protection
ordinance, or one that’s
weak and rarely enforced.
-1
Strong tree protection ordinance focused on maintaining mature trees with effective
procedures.
1 2
Tree protection policy
and enforcement No tree protection policy. -1
Integrated municipality-wide policies and practices to protect public and private
trees, consistently enforced and with penalties sufficient to deter violations.
4 5
Monitoring
Monitoring is infrequent
and reactive to reported
changes in tree health,
site condition.
1 Monitoring on a regular basis, with rotating schedule for each area. Monitors are professionals or volunteers trained to collect specific data required by municipality.
2 1
Tree risk management
No tree risk assessment
or risk management
program. Response is on
a reactive basis only.
-1
The community has written tree risk management policy (aka, ‘standard of care’) and
an operational plan for inspecting and mitigating reported tree problems, including a timetable for mitigating potential hazards. 2 3
Urban wood and green
waste utilization
While most green waste
does not go to landfill,
uses are limited to chips
or mulch.
1 The majority of green waste is reused or recycled – for energy, products, and other
purposes beyond chips or mulch.
2 1
Total Current Score -15 Total Goal Rating 70
85 Total Gap Score
64 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 65 City Data. 2021. Willits, California profile. http://www.city-data.com/city/Willits-California.html. Accessed July 20, 2021.

City of Willits. 1992. Vision 2020: Willits General Plan Revision. Adopted August 12, 1992. https://cityofwillits.org /DocumentCenter/View/262/City-of-Willits-General-Plan
EPA. 2019a. Reducing Urban Heat Islands: Compendium of Strategies, Urban Heat Island Basics. https://www.epa.gov /sites/production/files/2017-05/documents/reducing_urban_heat_islands_ch_1.pdf.

EPA. 2019b. “Using Trees and Vegetation to Reduce Heat Islands.” Last updated December 16, 2019. https://www.epa.gov /heatislands/using-trees-and-vegetation-reduce-heat-islands.

Richards, N.A. 1983. “Diversity and Stability in a Street Tree Population.” Urban Ecology 7(2): 159–171.

Willits Chamber of Commerce. 2021. Willits History. Accessed July 2021. https://visitwillits.com/willits-history /#:~:text=In%201888%20the%20flourishing%20tanbark%20industry%20led%20to,153%20in%201880%20to%20over%20 3%2C000%20in%201970.

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

REFERENCES

REFERENCES
REFERENCES .

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CITY OF WILLITS

URBAN FOREST
MANAGEMENT PLAN Prepared by
AUGUST 2022

TECHNICAL ASSESSEMENT
ii | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT

TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT

TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT

TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | iii
The Urban Forest Management Plan (UFMP) Technical Assessment provides the framework, methodology, and data to support the findings in the UFMP.

TECHNICAL ASSESSMENT
iv | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | v
1 URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES......8

1.1 City Resources................................................9

1.1.1 Staffing...................................................................................9

1.1.2 Budget..................................................................................11

1.1.3 Comparison to Other Municipalities................................12

1.1.4 High Costs of Deferred Maintenance...............................13

1.2 Management Practices ...............................14

1.2.1 Tree Planting and Establishment Care.............................16

1.2.2 Tree Maintenance...............................................................18

1.2.3 Tree Risk Management ......................................................19

1.2.4 Pest Disease and Invasive Species Management...........20

1.2.5 Tree Removal.......................................................................21

1.2.6 Tree Responsibility Policy ..................................................23

1.3 Tree Care Ordinance....................................24

1.3.1 Analysis of Standards.........................................................24

1.4 City Planning Documents ...........................25

1.4.1 Vision 2020: General Plan Revision (1992) and Safety Element Update (2019)................................................................25

1.4.2 Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan (2009) ....................27

1.4.3 Willits Safe Routes to School Action Plan (2017).............28

1.4.4 Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan (2016)......28

1.4.5 Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study (2017).............................................................................................29 2 STATUS OF THE URBAN FOREST...................30

2.1 Tree Canopy Assessment............................31

2.1.1 Why Canopy Cover Matters...............................................31

2.1.2 Historical Canopy Cover ....................................................33

2.1.3 Current Canopy Cover Estimate .......................................33

2.1.4 Increasing Canopy Cover ...................................................35

2.2 City Tree Inventory Methodology ..............37

2.2.1 Species Diversity.................................................................39

2.2.2 Age Distribution..................................................................45

2.2.3 Health Composition ...........................................................47

2.2.4 Environmental Benefits .....................................................48

2.2.5 Economic Value...................................................................49

2.2.6 Relative Performance Index..............................................50

2.2.7 Importance Value ...............................................................51 3 RECREATION GROVE PARK...........................52

3.1 Historic Management and Budget Issues....53

3.2 Rec Grove Park Tree Profile ........................54

3.2.1 Site........................................................................................54

3.2.2 Species Diversity.................................................................54

3.2.3 Tree Condition & Health ....................................................55

3.2.4 Age Distribution..................................................................55 4 COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT........................56

4.1 Public Survey ................................................57

4.2 Community Meetings..................................59

4.3 Stakeholder Interviews ...............................61 5 REFERENCES ..................................................62

TABLE OF CONTENTS
vi | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDICES
A Recommended Tree Species Palette
B Sidewalk Solutions
C Establishment Care Guidelines
D Highly Flammable Tree Species List
E Public Survey Results
F Tree Protection Guidelines
G Tree Protection Detail
H Funding Opportunities
I Sample Municipal Tree Ordinance

FIGURES
1 iTree Eco Pest and Pathogen Pest and Disease Threat
Analysis ............................................................................ 21 2 CalEnviroScreen Results.............................................. 32 3 Canopy Cover ............................................................... 34 4 Climate Comparison Cities Adapted from McBride
and Lacan 2018 ............................................................... 42 5 Fire Hazard Severity Zones in LRA ............................. 44 6 Age Distribution of Willits’s Top 10 Inventory .......... 46 TABLES

1. City of Willits Tree-Related Staff Positions..................9

2. Mean Number of Urban Forest-Related Full-Time
Equivalents at Municipalities Throughout the United
States................................................................................ 10

3. City of Willits Budget Related to Tree Management
Between FY16/17 and FY 20/21..................................... 11 4 .Comparison of Municipal Urban Forest Management
Funding ............................................................................ 12

5. Costs Associated with Community Forests ............. 13

6. Criteria for Recommended Tree Species Palette .... 15

7. Suggested Edits to Tree Care Ordinance.................. 24

8. City of Willits General Plan Implementation Measure
Summary.......................................................................... 25

9. Total Number of Trees Needed to Increase Canopy
Cover ................................................................................ 35

10. Total Number of Trees Needed to Plant per Year for
30 Years to Increase Canopy Cover............................... 36

11. Total Number of Trees Needed to Increase Canopy
Cover by Percent............................................................. 36

12. Attributes Collected for the City of Willits’s CAL
FIRE-Funded Tree Inventory .......................................... 38

13. Willits Tree Inventory and Vacant Site Locations.. 38

14. Top 10 Genera in Willits’s Tree Inventory............... 40

15. Top 10 Species in Willits’s Tree Inventory .............. 41

16. Tree Species In Willits’s Inventory Predicted To Be Heat or Water Sensitive ................................................. 43

17. Age Distribution of Willits’s Tree Inventory ........... 45

18. Tree Condition Categories ....................................... 47

19. Health Composition of the City’s Tree Inventory.. 47

20. Health Composition of Park and Street Trees by
Age ................................................................................. 48

21. Annual Environmental Services and Benefits
Provided by City-Managed Trees................................... 49

22. Financial Value of Willits Trees................................ 49

TABLE OF CONTENTS
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | vii

TABLE OF CONTENTS

23. Relative Performance Index of the Top 10 Species in the City’s Inventory......................................................... 50

24. Ten Species with the Highest Importance Values in
the Willits’s Tree Inventory ............................................ 51

25. Species Diversity of Trees at Rec Grove Park ........ 54

26. Condition of Trees at Rec Grove Park..................... 55

27. Age Distribution of Trees at Rec Grove Park ......... 55

28. Percentage of Survey Respondent Who Live or Work
in Willits............................................................................ 58

29. Demographics of Survey Respondents Compared to
Demographics of the City of Willits .............................. 58

30. Community Meeting Emerging Themes ................ 60 8 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 1
SECTION 1
SECTION 1
SECTION 1
Urban Forest
Management
Practices
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 9
Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1

1.1 City Resources

1.1.1 Staffing
The number of staff available to perform tree management and maintenance tasks is a critical element of a sustainable forest. The Department of Public Works conducts the City’s tree-related maintenance, in addition to supporting labor and maintenance on the water distribution system, drain system, sewer system, City-owned properties, streets, sidewalks, parks, and managing the Willits Municipal Airport. The Department of Public Works includes a Superintendent that oversees four staff members to carry out all work, and tree-specific tasks for Public Works staff constitute approximately 0.15 FTE per position (Table 1).

The Department of Public Works’ duties as they pertain to tree maintenance is limited by equipment, staff labor hours, and budget. This combination has resulted in deferred and reactionary maintenance of an aging tree population (See section 1.1.4:

High Costs of Deferred Maintenance for more details).

Based on the current capabilities and resources of the department, PW staff conduct the following duties in-house:
• All tree pruning and removal of deadwood that can be reached by a City-owned bucket truck (27 ft and below) • Pruning of small trees using a pole pruner
• Branch and/or whole tree failures
• Irrigation of trees
• Tree planting and establishment care
• Small tree removals
Table 1. City of Willits Tree-Related Staff Positions
Position Type Number of positions Number of FTEs
Maintenance Workers Laborer 3 0.45
Construction Specialist Project Lead 1 0.15
Public Works Superintendent Management/Supervisor 1 0.15 Total 5 0.75
10 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
Based on the current capabilities and resources of the department, the following duties must be contracted out to arborists or other businesses that own necessary equipment:
• All tree pruning and removal of deadwood above 27 ft
• Large tree removals
• Arborist assessments
• Tree climbing
• Stump grinding and removals
The following duties could be conducted in-house with adequate resources, equipment, and staff training:
• Tree climbing
• Stump grinding and removals
• Pruning and removal of deadwood at a height above 27 ft In 2016, an urban and community forestry census was published that detailed the activities of 667 municipal tree management programs throughout the country (Hauer and Peterson 2016a). Of the respondents, 47 cities had populations comparable to Willits (2,500-4,999), and an average of 3.3 FTEs were involved in the management of the City tree population (Table 2). These FTEs held positions such as arborists, tree trimmers, clerical support/office staff, equipment operators, laborers, managers, contracted nonprofits, seasonal employees, truck drivers, working foreman, and other (Hauer and Peterson 2016b). Willits tree maintenance staffing is lower than the average, and is not currently able to sustainably manage the urban forest at its current staffing level.

Table 2. Mean Number of Urban Forest-Related Full-Time Equivalents at Municipalities Throughout the United States Municipal Population Number of Cities Surveyed Mean Number of FTEs 2,500-4,999 47 3.3
5,000-9,999 35 3.1
10,000-24,999 41 4.7
25,000-49,999 121 5.3
50,000-99,999 146 6.3
100,000-249,999 87 11.8
250,000-499,999 20 18.3
500,000-1,000,000 9 18.2
1,000,000+ 2 38.0
SECTION 1 | Urban Forest Management Practices
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 11

1.1.2 Budget
The Public Works Department received an average of $8,200 between FY16/17 and FY 20/21 to support tree pruning, removal, and arborist reviews (Table 3). Due to the City’s financial crisis, Public Works received $8,000 for tree pruning in FY20/21, and staff reported the funds are not sufficient to conduct regular maintenance of the City managed tree inventory. The lack of funds has resulted in reactive tree work when a tree is identified as posing an elevated level of risk to public safety, often in high profile areas such as Recreation Grove Park. In the event of an elevated level of tree risk, Public Works staff must find the funds to mitigate the concern in other budgets like capital improvement, make one-time requests to City Council, or identify limited special funding.

With much of the funding directed towards reducing elevated tree risk when it is identified, limited funds remain for proactive tree pruning and risk mitigation. This type of reactive maintenance is often more expensive than proactive tree pruning and has the potential to elevate the risk associated with a tree by not mitigating a defect in a timely manner.

Typically, when reviewing City budgets, the salaries, benefits, overhead, pruning, and maintenance costs are all added together and divided by the number of trees in the City inventory to determine the amount the City spends per tree. This analysis is most accurate when the City has tree workers and/or a City arborist whose duties are clearly dedicated to the urban forest.

In the case of Willits, given that Public Works employees have wide ranging duties that cover all aspects of the Public Works department, it would be inaccurate to include their salaries in this analysis. Likewise, because the “Other Contracts” budget line are not always related to tree work, and ad-hoc maintenance funds are difficult to predict as they only become available when they are needed, only funding related to “tree pruning, removal, and arborist reviews” and “Irrigation and miscellaneous” Table 3. City of Willits Budget Related to Tree Management Between FY16/17 and FY 20/21 Budget Line Items FY 16/17 FY 17/18 FY 18/19 FY 19/20 FY 20/21 Average Tree pruning, removal, and arborist reviews $8,000 $12,000 $5,000 $8,000 $8,000 $8,200 Irrigation & miscellaneous $4,100 $4,100 $4,100 $2,200 $2,200 $ 3,340 Other contracts* $17,967 $27,856 $7,000 $8,000 $6,000 $13,364 Willits per-tree spending $27.15
Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
*Not specifically allocated to trees, but a portion of these funds are used as emergency funds should public safety be affected by trees. 12 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
are included in per-tree budget calculations. Using this method, the funding Willits receives could equate to an average annual spending of $27.15 per tree if Willits was able to implement a preventative maintenance program for trees. However, under the current management system, the entirety of annual funding is used to address existing safety issues on relatively few trees, and not for preventative tree maintenance. This management system is more costly in the long run, and is discussed further in Section

1.1.4.: High Costs of Deferred Maintenance.

SECTION 1 | Urban Forest Management Practices

1.1.3 Compared to Other Municipalities
One way to measure if current City funding of the urban forest program is sufficient, is to compare the City’s budget to other municipalities. Table 4 provides the budgets of various urban forest management programs throughout cities in California, and from survey respondents to the Hauer and Peterson study. Comparison cities were selected based in part on the amount of verifiable information for each city to provide an accurate baseline of the potential funding needed to carry out management activities and costs.
a
United States Census Bureau 2019
bDoes not include funds for salaries, benefits, or overhead costs c
Estimated number as the city’s inventory is only a sample When compared to the group of 27 cities with populations of less than 5,000, if Willits was able to allocate spending of $27.15 per tree, it would spend more per tree than an average city of comparable size. Approximately 60% of the surveyed cities conduct maintenance on a similar time frame to Willits (only as-needed and/or on an emergency basis). is important to highlight Table 4. Comparison of Municipal Urban Forest Management Funding City Populationa Tree Budget Number of Publicly
Managed Trees
Tree Budget
Allocation per Tree
Willits 4,893 $11,540b 425 $27.15
Hauer and Peterson (2016a)
survey respondents (n=27) 2,400- 5,000 $19,406 1,321 $21.97 Atwater 29,296 $75,000b 7,922 $9.46
National City 61,394 $224,000 9,397 $23.84
San Francisco 874,961 $19,000,000 236,000c $80.51
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 13
Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
that despite Willits’s consistency with the other municipalities of comparable size, only a certain level of tree maintenance and stewardship can be achieved by maintaining this level of funding, especially if staff time and capacity is a factor.

For the sake of comparison in size and scope of maintenance, the City of Atwater’s $75,000 budget funds contractor inspections, pruning, removal, new tree planting, and service requests. However, they spend $9.37 per tree annually, and much of this funding comes from a gas tax. In the City of National City, the $224,000 annual budget funds in-house and contract trimming, planting, and removals. Their budget is nearly three times larger than Atwater’s and as a result can spend $23.84 per tree.

The City of San Francisco has substantially more publicly managed trees and funding than Willits, and understanding its funding priorities and maintenance tasks may inform Willits’s plans for the future of its urban forest. Internal program audits in 2012 and 2014 resulted in placing and passing a 2016 ballot measure that requires the City to budget $19 million per year on urban forest management. The funding supports City management of all trees in the public space (streets and parks), provides 3 years of establishment care to newly planted trees, an urban forest management plan, and a planting plan to increase canopy cover. In addition, the City of San Francisco takes full responsibility for tree pruning and repairing sidewalk damage caused by trees.

1.1.4 High Cost of Deferred Maintenance
Table 5 outlines various costs associated with maintaining a community forest. There are also costs associated with not maintaining the community forest, and these costs are typically greater. For example, Browning and Wiant (1997) found that deferring utility tree pruning 4 years past the optimal pruning cycle (5 to 7 years) yielded $1.47 to $1.69 in costs for every $1 deferred, and resulted in a two-fold increase in pruning debris. Ryder and Moore (2013) found that pruning trees at a young age (formative pruning) averaged $2.08 per tree, and that deferring formative pruning would increase pruning costs between $58.37 and $83.81 twenty years later. Ultimately, as demonstrated in urban forestry and arboriculture literature, the cost of not maintaining the community forest is much greater than sustainably funding the community forest.

Table 5. Costs Associated with Community Forests
Cost Examples
Direct costs Planting, pruning, watering, and other types of maintenance Infrastructure
interference costs Pavement and sewer repair, blockage of signs, tree-initiated power outages Externally related
costs
Emissions of biogenic volatile organic compounds, release of carbon dioxide during decomposition, allergies due to pollen release, leaf/debris cleanup
Opportunity costs Space for trees cannot be used for parking, bike lanes, etc.

Staff time Salary and benefits for staff and laborers associated with urban forest management and maintenance.

Source: Adapted from Voght et al. 2015.
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1.2 Management Practices
One of the tenets of urban forest sustainability is that urban forests require human intervention (Clark et al. 1997). The urban forest of Willits is comprised of naturally occurring trees in forested and riparian areas, as well as trees planted by the City and property owners. Trees that occur in preserved habitats can naturally regenerate in the landscape. The remaining parts of the urban forest that exist in the built environment do not share the same ability. Trees in an urban environment are surrounded by concrete, sidewalks, asphalt roads, buildings, homes, and other urban infrastructure components that make it highly unlikely for a tree to regenerate on its own. . When trees are planted, they need supplemental watering to establish roots. As they grow and develop a canopy, the limbs and branches need pruning to increase safety and limit conflict with infrastructure. When trees die, they require removal and replacement, to complete the life cycle and start anew. The following sections outline the management practices of the City and provide an analysis based on current research, International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) and American National Standards Institute (ANSI) best management practices, interviews with City staff, and community feedback.

1.2.1 Tree Planting and Establishment Care
The current canopy cover of the City is 16%, and 75 to 150 trees will need to be planted annually over the next 30 years to progress towards achieving canopy cover goals (see Section 2.1, Tree Canopy Assessment). The inventory data also reflects 125 available locations for the City to plant trees on streets and parks. While there is the potential to increase the total available planting locations through road and mobility related capital improvement projects, the overall ability of the City to plant trees and increase canopy cover will remain low. As such, the City will need to ensure each publicly managed tree it plants is thoughtfully chosen and properly installed so it can successfully establish in the landscape and begin to progress towards providing the highest return possible of environmental services to the City.

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Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1

1.2.1.1 Current Activities
Due to limited City resources, tree planting activities are almost entirely supported by grant funding. Recently, the City was awarded a CalFire grant to plant 165 trees (50 street and 115 park trees), provide establishment care, and complete this UFMP.

When the project is completed, the new trees will increase the City inventory by 40%. Additional tree planting will occur on an ad hoc basis to replace a removed tree but otherwise the City has no formal tree planting program.

Expanding available tree planting locations will be dependent on the ability of the City to effectively plan for trees and partner with outside entities like the California Department of Transportation (Caltrans). Creating space for trees in any city is difficult without a concerted effort to include trees in the beginning of the planning process. There will be few opportunities to incorporate tree planting into City development and any missed opportunity to plant a new tree will be difficult to regain later.

1.2.1.2 Street Tree Planting List Review
A vital component of developing and maintaining canopy cover is the ability of the City to preserve tree health and vigor for multiple decades. This process begins when the tree species are selected for a particular location. Proper tree species selection will help develop an urban forest that is resilient and adapted to climate change. A recommended update to the City’s tree palette is included in Appendix A. The criteria to include a tree species on the palette is based on Table 6 below:

Table 6. Criteria for Recommended Tree Species Palette
Criteria Indicator Reference
Climate adaptability
Tree species that are expected to be adapted
to changing climate conditions over the next
100 years.

McBride and Lacan 2018
Drought Tolerance Tree species with low or very-low water use requirements
Water Use Classification of Landscape Species
(WUCOLS) ratings
Species Diversity Planting palette includes enough species to maintain species diversity goals City Inventory Data
Spacing Requirements Tree species can maximize canopy spread without interfering with infrastructure
SelecTree, presented by the Urban Forest
Ecosystems Institute at Cal Poly
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1.2.1 Tree Planting and Establishment Care
The list of species recommended for planting in Willits is also notable for the species that are not included. Based on the criteria outlined in Table 6, 7 of the 10 most common species in the City inventory are not expected to be well-adapted to changing climate conditions such as increased annual temperatures and extended periods of drought. Bradford pear, Oregon ash, red maple, and redwood trees as not expected to be adapted to increasing temperatures and water availability. The remaining species of trident maple, American sycamore, and Siberian elm are also expected to be vulnerable to climate change and struggle to remain healthy into the future (see Section 2.2.1, Species Diversity).

The recommended species list contains 35 tree species that are expected to thrive over the next 100 years. This list provides enough species to maintain diversity levels and a variety of sizes to meet spacing restrictions. Like all aspects of the UFMP, the recommended species list will need periodic review to ensure the selected species are still appropriate for the environmental conditions within the City.

1.2.1.3 Recommended Improvements to Tree Planting
Limited tree planting locations are available within the current streetscape due to small sidewalks, adjacent buildings, and other hardscape. Creating new tree planting locations can also include creative design and infrastructure solutions that are not currently implemented in the City. Appendix B, Sidewalk Solutions, provides a thorough discussion of various methods the City can implement to increase the available space for existing trees, such as expanded tree wells, meandering sidewalks, and decomposed granite. Appendix B also includes methods to design new tree planting locations to provide the soil volume needed for tree growth in dense urban areas such as suspended pavements, lowered tree wells, and structural soils.

1.2.1.4 Establishment Care
Establishment care is the period of three to five years after a tree is planted when it is dependent on supplemental watering, weed abatement, and mulching to successfully transplant into the new landscape. This period of maintenance is included as an extension of the tree planting process to emphasize that a successful tree planting is complete only when a tree has established roots that can provide the water and nutrients it needs to perform biological functions without further assistance from people.

Often city tree planting programs are dependent on residents and business owners to provide this care because funding for planting activities usually does not cover establishment care. As such, establishment care activities provide an opportunity to engage the community by holding volunteer events to water, mulch, weed, and provide other maintenance to newly planted trees.

Willits uses a combination of bubbler irrigation and watering trucks to water trees planted for its CalFire grant project.

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Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
The installation of bubbler irrigation has higher initial costs than hand watering, but provides the longterm benefit of needing less staff, equipment, and resources. This system will help ensure newly planted
trees receive the water they need, without the City
having staff dedicated to watering. Once grant funds
are spent, future development activities will need to
consider watering along with tree species selection
and placement, which would benefit from securing
funds to install irrigation for newly planted trees.

Appendix C. Establishment Care Guidelines outlines
the various activities needed to maintain newly
planted trees. Healthy soil and proper watering are
critical to tree survival after transplanting. Actions like weed abatement and applying a layer of mulch are
important to create healthy soil conditions for roots to absorb water and nutrients. Maintaining a water basin
ensures irrigation stays directed towards the root ball and can slowly filter deep into the soil. Tree stakes and ties are installed on newly planted trees to stabilize
the tree until the roots are established and able to
support the tree during wind events. Properly installed stakes and ties may only need minor adjustments
until the time when it is appropriate to remove them
but will need to be monitored during maintenance
visits and adjusted as needed. Establishment care
guidelines can also be provided to residents and
business owners in education efforts.
18 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

1.2.2 Tree Maintenance
The discussion of the City budget in this chapter outlines the challenges to implement regular tree maintenance and pruning cycles with current funding levels, and the City is experiencing higher costs to maintain trees because it is deferring maintenance.

Continuing to defer maintenance will likely make it more financially cumbersome for the City to address the pruning needs of its tree inventory as tree grow larger and defects become exacerbated.. It is not incumbent upon the City to immediately address all pruning needs, but rather develop a strategy to prioritize pruning, and creating a budget to maintain a pruning cycle. The overall goal of the City tree pruning program will be to maintain trees that present low levels of risk from planting through removal.

Achieving this strategy is dependent on regular inspections and pruning of City trees.

The inventory of City-managed trees completed for this UFMP includes maintenance needs recommendations that are categorized by the CalFire grant guidelines. The CalFire guidelines include 5 categories of tree pruning needs, which are presented below with the accompanying number of trees in the inventory that are assigned to each category. • Priority 1 Prune, 26 Trees: Trees that require Priority 1 pruning are recommended for trimming to remove hazardous deadwood, hangers, or broken branches. These trees have broken or hanging limbs, hazardous deadwood, and dead, dying, or diseased limbs or leaders greater than four inches in diameter. • Priority 2 Prune, 67 Trees: These trees have dead, dying, diseased, or weakened branches between two and four inches in diameter and are potential safety hazards.
• Large Tree Routine Prune, 196 Trees: These trees require routine horticultural pruning to correct structural problems or growth patterns, which would eventually obstruct traffic or interfere with utility wires or buildings. Trees in this category are large enough to require bucket truck access or manual climbing. • Small Tree Routine Prune, 41 Trees: These trees require routine horticultural pruning to correct structural problems or growth patterns, which would eventually obstruct traffic or interfere with utility wires or buildings. These trees are small growing, mature trees that can be evaluated and pruned from the ground. • Training Prune, 28 Trees: Young, large-growing trees that are still small must be pruned to correct or eliminate weak, interfering, or objectionable branches to minimize future maintenance requirements. These trees, up to 20 feet in height, can be worked with a pole-pruner by a person standing on the ground.

The short-term need is for the City is to address the 93 trees identified in the Priority 1 and Priority 2 categories. These trees have visible defects that have an elevated potential for failure. Since these defects are noted and recorded within the inventory, the City has a responsibility to take reasonable steps to correct the defects. City staff reported that this level of pruning work must be completed by contractors, because City staff do not have the equipment and training to safely complete the work. The scope of this type of work may require a significant portion of the annual budget that is dedicated to tree management. If so, the City may SECTION 1 | Urban Forest Management Practices
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 19
consider a special one-time allocation of funds specific to addressing the pruning needs of these 93 trees. After the Priority 1 and 2 tree are pruned, they can be included into the regular maintenance cycle of the City.

Trees in the large tree routine prune category have routine maintenance needs that do not require immediate attention. Pruning on these 196 trees can be spread out over a 5 to 7 year period which will provide predictable annual budget needs. Because these trees are large enough to require a bucket truck to access, the City will have to contract out this work. It is important that the City annually dedicate funding to the routine pruning of large trees to help mitigate trees from becoming Priority 1 and 2 pruning needs, and incurring the associated higher costs.

The final two categories contain 69 trees and are small tree routine prune and training prune. This type of work can be completed on the ground and does not require specialized equipment. As such, City staff are already completing this pruning on an annual basis. Not every tree will need to be pruned on annual basis, but all trees should be assessed for health and structural deficiencies. Small tree and training pruning is also critical to encouraging structurally sound tree crowns and avoiding costly work when the trees are mature.

1.2.3 Tree Risk Management
Tree risk management begins by determining the risk associated with individual trees and what options exist to mitigate the risk.

Risk assessment is a specialized skill of an International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Certified Arborist who holds a Tree Risk Assessment Qualification (TRAQ). The TRAQ standards provide the arboricultural risk rating system that uses a combination of the likelihood a tree or tree part will fail, the time frame in which failure may occur, likelihood of impact to target (e.g., people, home, car), and severity if impact should occur to determine the overall risk associated with a tree. Each factor of the TRAQ assessment is important to determine the overall risk rating.

ISA defines three levels of risk assessment based on the time spent evaluating a tree, technology involved, and advanced testing methods. The three levels of tree risk assessment are:
• Level 1: A basic examination that is completed with limited visual exposure such as driving by in a car, or surveying large areas with a drone.
• Level 2: A 360-degree visual assessment that evaluates the tree’s crown, trunk, and trunk flare; visible above-ground roots; and site conditions. The assessment involves inspection of the tree’s crown, branches, trunk, and root collar for the presence of structural defects such as included bark, cavities, fungal fruiting bodies, and/or decay. Should a defect be observed, the assessment evaluates the likelihood said defect could fail, the likelihood of the defect impacting a specific target should failure occur, and the subsequent damage that may occur should failure and impact occur. Through this evaluation, the level of risk for a tree and/or a specific tree part is determined through the use of ISA’s Tree Risk Matrix. The Tree Risk Matrix consists of Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
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two matrices that are used to estimate the likelihood of a tree impacting a specific target (e.g., automobile, person, house), and to determine the level of risk as a combination of likelihood of tree or tree part failing and impacting a target, as well as the severity of the consequences from that failure. Through the use of the risk matrix, the qualified arborist is able to determine if the observed defect and/or tree has a low, moderate, high, or extreme risk of failure. • Level 3: Includes all evaluations of the level 2 assessment but also includes advanced methods to analyze decay, pests, diseases, and root structure. Some of these methods could include sonic tomography, resistograph, lab testing, and air spades.

During the Willits tree inventory, all trees were assessed, but not specifically for risk. At a minimum, the City can contract with a TRAQ qualified certified arborist to conduct a level 1 assessment of the City inventory to identify any obvious maintenance needs that need immediate attention. This could include observations for dead or broken branches, significant crown dieback, or damage to the trunk. If maintenance needs are observed, a level 2 risk assessment can be completed following the ISA Tree Risk Assessment Form to identify targets, defects, likelihood of failure, likelihood of impact, and severity of damage if impact was to occur. The level 2 assessment would also include recommendations to reduce the level of risk like moving a target such as a park bench, pruning a broken branch, or treatments for a pest or disease.

Level 3 assessments require specialized equipment and training that may not be available to local arborists and may have a high associated cost. This assessment can be reserved for trees with a significant cultural or monetary value to the City when a high level of detailed information is needed to decide on tree preservation.

1.2.4 Pest Disease and Invasive Species Management
California acquires a new invasive pest approximately once every 60 days (Sutherland 2014) underscoring the need for the City to identify what actions it can take to manage an invasive pest or disease. Species diversity is the first line of defense to prevent a catastrophic loss of an urban forest due to a pest or disease (for more information, see Section 2.2.1: Species Diversity). Based on the species diversity analysis the valley oak, Bradford pear, Oregon ash, and red maple trees represent more than 5% of the City inventory. Losing one of these tree species would have the highest impact on the tree inventory and canopy cover. Valley oak trees in particular comprise the majority of Rec Grove park and the sudden loss of the species would have a devastating impact to the park and park users.

According to the I-Tree Eco Pest and Pathogen threat analysis of the City inventory, only four trees (Red) are susceptible to known invasive pests within Mendocino County, and account for 6% of the City inventory. This indicates a current low level of vulnerability to known invasive pests within the County. The City can communicate with the County to stay informed when a known pest or pathogen enter the County to understand the impact it may have City trees. If the pest is known to impact a tree in the City inventory, that species should receive additional monitoring for signs of pest or disease infestation.

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Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1

1.2.5 Tree Removal
Urban forest management includes many decisions to sustain the health of trees and preserve them in the landscape. At some point, all urban trees will require removal and replacement. Ideally the decision for removal is after the tree has completed its life cycle and is no longer viable in the landscape. In other instances, a healthy tree may conflict with infrastructure or development, and a decision must be made if the tree can be preserved or removed. Many municipal codes include provisions on various Figure 1. iTree Eco Pest and Pathogen Pest and Disease Threat Analysis 22 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 1 | Urban Forest Management Practices
situations when tree removal is considered justified by the city. Tree removal is frequently considered when the tree is:
• Dead, dying, or diseased.
• Presents an imminent hazard to people or property.
• Interferes with public utilities.
• Damaging infrastructure and creating a public safety hazard. • Damaging improvements on private property.
• Prevents the reasonable development of private property.

It is difficult to prescribe a set standard to determine when tree removal is justified as each case comes with its own unique set of circumstances and possibilities for preservation. Understanding the situation and deciding on whether to remove or preserve a tree is a decision to be made by a certified arborist unless an imminent hazard must be immediately corrected. City’s that do not have an arborist on staff often contract tree removal decisions to third party on-call arborists.

Whatever the circumstance, the removal of a tree can be a difficult decision for the City to make and difficult for the community to accept if they don’t understand or agree with the decision. Providing an opportunity for an open dialogue between the City and stakeholders is one avenue to alleviate community concerns and ensure all options are explored before an asset is removed.

Community stakeholders in Willits have expressed an interest to the City in knowing when tree removals will occur and giving input on if they feel the removal is justified. In response, City staff have developed an online survey to give stakeholders a platform to voice concerns and opinions on City directed tree removals. This method gives stakeholders the ability to share written observations but not the opportunity to engage with City staff directly on removal decisions. Tree removals could be further discussed in a City public meeting forum like a Public Works or City Council meeting, but these forums provide limited time for stakeholder engagement.

Urban forest advisory committees (UFAC) are one commonly used approach to provide a structured framework for stakeholder and City dialogue. A UFAC typically consists of City staff who manage trees, residents, tree advocate non-profit organizations, and other community stakeholder representatives. UFAC’s operate as an official City committee with meetings that are governed by the Brown Act. This creates a structured format for dialogue, transparency of City work, and assurance the public is notified of tree removals. This approach provides a high level of engagement with the community but also requires the dedication of staff to facilitate and hold meetings.

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1.2.6 Tree Responsibility Policy
The City does not currently have an active policy that stipulates the party responsible for maintenance and management of trees and damage to infrastructure on public and private property. A City’s municipal code typically provides a set City policy to clarify the roles and responsibilities of City staff, residents, and private property owners when managing the Willits urban forest. A thorough municipal code not only outlines tree management responsibilities, but also provides a stated purpose, governing authority, definitions, standards of care, prohibited actions, required permits, penalties for violations of the code, and other policies specific to the City. A successful code can be followed and understood by both professionals experienced in city codes and stakeholders with a limited background. Appendix I is provided as example language to use in developing a tree policy in the municipal code.

The following policies are recommended to
clarify tree management responsibilities:

City responsibility
a. Trees in parks
b. Trees in the public right-of-way
c. Trees in the parkway strip (area between
the curb and sidewalk)
d. Trees in the CalTrans right-of-way
e. Tree failure-related emergencies that
result from private property responsibility
trees encroaching on the public right-of-way
that requires immediate action.1
Private property owner responsibility
a. Trees on private property2
b. Trees on private property with limbs that
overhang into the public right-of-way
1 The City may elect to recover the costs of the tree-related emergency from the private property owner that is responsible for the tree. 2 Private property owners shall be responsible for trees in a front yard that are in the public right-of-way. 24 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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1.3 Tree Care Ordinance
The City of Willits Tree Care Ordinance (Ordinance) provides the landscape and streetscape standard plans for tree planting and protection. The collection of standard details is to be followed on all tree planting efforts within City streetscapes and landscapes.

The following section highlights specific aspects of each detail with recommendations to update the standards to align with ISA best management practices.

1.3.1 Analysis of Standards
Table 7 outlines specific issues within the Tree Care Ordinance that should be corrected to align with ISA best management practices. Other items contained in the detail that are not addressed below should be considered in alignment with ISA standards.

Overall, the standard details for tree planting and site preparation are appropriate and should continue to be used with the following edits.

Table 7. Suggested Edits to Tree Care Ordinance
Detail to Edit Correction to be Made Standard Details to Edit Fertilizer tablets
The use of fertilizer tablets should be removed from the details as it not necessary to uniformly apply to trees when they are planted. Fertilizers should be used only when there is a soil or tree health condition that would benefit from its use. 901, 902, 903, 904, 906
Linear root barrier,
min 18” deep Root barriers should be installed to a depth of 24” to be effective. 901, 902, 903 Additional drainage Remove detail for additional drainage as this will encourage water to filter away from the root ball. 901, 902, 904
Street Tree List See Appendix B. Recommended Tree Species Palette 911 CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 25
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1.4 City Planning Documents

1.4.1 Vision 2020: General Plan Revision (1992) and
Safety Element Update (2019)
The Willits General Plan, adopted in 1992, is a broad policy document that provides a framework that guides development in the City. The General Plan contains goals, policies, and implementation measures that guide long-term development within the City, and consists of eight elements: land use, circulation, housing, conservation and open space, noise, housing, public services, parks and recreation, safety, and economic development. The City is in the process of updating the General Plan Safety Element, and completed a public draft of the update in 2019, which addresses natural hazards that could impact the community. There are no goals or policies in the General Plan or Safety Element update that directly address trees. However, the draft Safety Element update discusses the wildfire risk in the City and the importance of vegetation management. Policy S-3.10 of the updated Safety Element calls for coordinated vegetation management activities to reduce wildfire risk in the City and within railroad right of way.

Additionally, the land use, circulation, and conservation and open space elements contain implementation measures that address trees. Implementation measures are designed to help implement City policies and achieve long term goals. Table 8 highlights the measures that address trees.

Table 8. City of Willits General Plan Implementation Measure Summary General Plan Section Implementation Measure
Land Use
Implementation Measure 1.340:Strengthen the Zoning Ordinance to promote landscaping, specifically:
prescribe a ratio of trees per parking stalls and require parking lots to be interspersed with landscaping; prescribe a minimum proportion of landscaped area for each land use category; require landscaping plans to be submitted and approved as part of the application process. utilize drought-resistant landscape materials to the greatest feasible extent.

Circulation Implementation Measure 2.380:Provide additional landscaping, including street trees, along existing roadways.

Utilize reclaimed water to the maximum feasible extent to irrigate roadway landscaping.

Conservation and Open
Space
Implementation Measure 3.360:Appoint, by December 1992, a committee to identify local trees of significance and to make recommendations to the City Council toward the formulation of a Tree Preservation Ordinance.

Adopt, by December 1993, a City-wide Tree Preservation Ordinance. 26 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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Relationship to the UFMP
This UFMP supports the General Plan by providing recommendations for carrying out the General Plan implementation measures related to trees. The UFMP provides the City with updated tree planting standards and specifications, a street tree species list, recommended tree planting requirements based on available planting space and land use type (e.g., residential, commercial, transportation corridors, parking lots, etc.), and recommendations for a tree protection ordinance for consideration for adoption into the Municipal Code. Further discussion of these recommendations is included below.

Land Use Implementation Measure 1.3.40
A review of the City’s Zoning Ordinance revealed the City has not fully executed the land use implementation measure 1.340.

Currently, there are no parking lot requirements related to landscaping or trees. Shade trees planted in parking lots reduce excessive heat build-up that contributes to the urban heat island effect. Typical parking lot shade tree ordinances in California require parking lots to be landscaped such that 50% of hardscape will be shaded within 15 years after development of the lot.

Such ordinances outline species selection, planting standards and specifications, projected canopy size and shade calculations, as well as a plan for enforcement of the code. The likelihood for tree mortality and actual achievable crown size must also be considered given parking lot growing conditions. Many shade tree ordinances are only partially effective due to ineffective enforcement, poor growing conditions, and errors in shade calculations (Swiecki 2001). Review of development plans by an arborist can help prevent these errors and ensure appropriate species and site conditions are considered.

Zoning Code Section 17.60, Landscaping, sets minimum standards for landscaping in industrial and commercial development, requiring a minimum of 2 square feet of landscaping per foot of street frontage and the use of drought-resistant plants. There are no minimum landscape requirements established for other land uses in the City. However, Zoning Code Section 17.70, Site Plan Review, indicates that landscaping, including location and type, should be detailed on site plans that are submitted to the planning department for review. Minimum landscaping requirements, including minimum tree planting requirements, for each land use type in the City would help to increase canopy cover while also ensuring equitable canopy cover across land uses throughout the City. Site plans that detail landscaping and tree planting specifications can ensure that trees are provided adequate soil volume and growing conditions. Review of site plans by an arborist would also ensure appropriate species selection for specific site conditions.

Circulation Implementation Measure 2.380
Many of the City’s long-range planning efforts (further discussed below) are executing circulation implementation measure 2.380 by planning for landscaping and additional improvements along the City’s roadways. Although the City does not currently have the infrastructure for reclaimed water use and there are no ordinances/policies in the City’s Zoning Code requiring the use of reclaimed water in roadway landscaping, this aspect of implementation measure 2.380 is something that the City can continue CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 27
Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
to strive for in future landscaping efforts. The use of recycled water in roadway projects as well as other development types such as commercial, industrial, and public land uses, would reduce watering costs for tree establishment care and long-term watering needs. Further, establishing minimum tree planting requirements for roadway improvement projects would help to increase canopy cover and improve the pedestrian environment along the City’s transportation corridors. Tree plantings along roadways must consider existing infrastructure to avoid potential conflicts, such as overhead or underground utilities, existing hardscape, and motorist sight lines. The street tree species list included in this UFMP includes mature tree heights and size classifications which can be referenced when planting along roadways and in urban environments.

Conservation and Open Space Implementation Measure 3.360 The City has not yet appointed a committee or created a City-wide tree preservation ordinance. Zoning Code Section 17.48, Historical Resources, authorizes the protection of historic resources, which can include trees. However, a separate tree protection ordinance would better provide protection to trees of importance in the City. This UFMP provides recommendations for creating a tree protection ordinance for consideration for adoption into the City’s Municipal Code.

1.4.2 Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan (2009)
The Bicycle and Pedestrian Specific Plan provides strategies for improving bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure and circulation throughout Willits. The plan identifies potential bicycle and pedestrian routes, design standards, goals, policies and implementation strategies to improve bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The plan indicates that the majority (80-90%) of bicyclevehicular and pedestrian-vehicular accidents occur on Main Street and recommends at least 8-foot sidewalks on Main Street to increase safety.

Relationship to the UFMP
As discussed in the plan, safety is a primary reason to improve bicycling and walking conditions in Willits. Trees and landscape planters can serve as physical buffers between motorized traffic and pedestrians/bicyclists, which can greatly enhance perceived and actual safety. Appropriately sited trees and other landscaping in the streetscape can contribute to traffic calming, impact route choice, reduce stress, and increase safety on urban roadways (Wolf 2010). Studies analyzing vehicle accidents on urban roads have found that vehicle crashes were reduced by as much as 67% on road segments with street trees and traffic calming treatments as opposed to roads without improvements (Dumbaugh 2005, 2006). Consequently, roads with street trees and landscaping also increase pedestrian and bicyclist safety by influencing safer driving practices and by providing a buffer between vehicles and other modes of travel if these elements are appropriately sited. In addition to increased safety, trees will offer shade and beautify bicycle and pedestrian routes, providing a more enjoyable experience and further encouraging use of the City’s active transportation routes. Inclusion of trees in improvements to bicycle and pedestrian routes would result in increased safety benefits as well as improved aesthetics and overall experience along these routes. This UFMP provides guidance that can be utilized when planning improvements to bicycle and pedestrian routes. 28 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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1.4.3 Willits Safe Routes to School Action Plan (2017)
The Safe Routes to School Action Plan provides recommendations for improvements to the streetscape that would increase safety and accommodations for local students to walk and bike to school. The plan serves as an update to the 2009 Safe Routes to School Plan. The plan provides an update to previously recommended improvements as well as new recommendations, one of which involves enhancing pedestrian areas with new features such as street trees. Each recommendation is given a prioritization score using a specific set of criteria (outlined in Appendix H of the plan). The plan gives the recommended enhancement that includes street trees and other facilities a score of 1 for safety, meaning it would improve pedestrian/bicyclist safety only somewhat.

Relationship to the UFMP
As discussed above, trees can provide improved safety along urban streets. Studies have found a significant drop in travel speeds (an average decrease of approximately 3 miles per hour) on roads where trees are present, as well as an increased perception of safety (Topp 1990). As such, the prioritization for planting trees and other features along bicycle routes can be given a higher score for improvements to safety. The City should refer to this UFMP when determining tree species and planting standards for trees to plant along bicycle routes.

1.4.4 Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan (2016) The Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan was created to guide the transformation of 3 miles of the City’s Main Street into a more pedestrian-oriented and business-friendly environment with enhanced community character following Caltrans’ development of a Highway 101 bypass that detours around the City. Main Street has served as a primary north-south transportation corridor through Willits since its incorporation. The plan provides a framework for a long-term and short-term improvements for the Willits Main Street corridor and envisions a vibrant streetscape that supports motorized and non-motorized safety, traffic calming, pedestrian and bicycle improvements, landscaping, and public art. Plan development included meaningful community engagement efforts, which identified inclusion of trees along Main Street as a top priority.

As detailed in the plan, the Main Street corridor lacks trees in many areas, and narrow sidewalks with limited shade contribute to an unpleasant pedestrian environment, especially along the South Main Street corridor (Highway 20). Since adoption of the plan, the City has planted 38 street trees along Main Street and implemented sidewalk improvements. The recommendations, design strategies and concepts outlined in the plan identify trees as a key factor in beautifying Main Street and creating a sense of place.

The plan appropriately asserts that street trees “should be selected for aesthetic purposes, climate appropriateness, and for success in urban environments. Preparation of soil for trees and proper planting is key to their success and to minimize sidewalk damage. Structural soil, soil trenches, and structural cells are important features to establishing healthy trees that give return on the investment.” Additionally, in areas where planted center medians are proposed, the plan indicates that “proper spacing and tree height should be considered in landscape plans… as it relates to visibility and emergency response vehicle requirements.” CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 29
Urban Forest Management Practices | SECTION 1
Additional infrastructure conflicts to consider when planting in medians or along any roadway include underground and overhead utilities, hardscape, and other facilities already present.

The plan also indicates that during redevelopment, certain components, including street trees, plantings and irrigation, could be added by the City after completion of the primary construction phase. While planting trees after initial construction would help to reduce the risk of damage to trees during construction activities, as indicated in the plan it is important that trees are considered during the planning stages to ensure appropriate soil volume and growing conditions are provided. Trees should not be planted directly into compacted soils, and soil amendments as well as alternative designs may be needed to ensure tree survival.

Relationship to the UFMP
The Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan outlines recommendations, design strategies and concepts for including trees in the redevelopment of Main Street. As discussed in the plan, trees provide multiple benefits that will improve the pedestrian environment and enhance the downtown area. As previously mentioned, 38 trees have since been planted along Main Street and sidewalk improvement projects have been implemented. This UFMP provides detailed guidance related to species selection, soil volume, structural soils, and planting standards, as well as solutions for reducing tree and infrastructure conflicts in the urban environment (see Appendix B) that can be used when implementing additional redevelopment projects along Main Street.

Additionally, as part of the UFMP process, the City and consultant team conducted a stakeholder interview with Caltrans to discuss future collaboration on street improvement projects along South Main Street (Highway 20). The City and Caltrans will continue to discuss these possibilities and explore opportunities to jointly pursue funding for a pedestrian improvement program in this area.

Based on discussions during the interview, there is potential to pursue funding for transportation projects through Senate Bill 1.

1.4.5 Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study (2017) The Downtown Willits Streets and Alleys Connectivity Study was prepared to identify circulation, safety, parking, and aesthetic improvements throughout the downtown area. The study provides recommendations and shovel-ready projects to be implemented in conjunction with the Willits Main Street Corridor Enhancement Plan. Projects identified in the study include preservation of existing trees or planting of new street trees. During public engagement activities, residents expressed concern over the need to preserve existing street trees while rectifying sidewalk damage caused by trees.

Relationship to the UFMP
The UFMP provides guidance related to planning for trees in the streetscape to be used when implementing recommended projects and action items in the study. Specifically, the UFMP includes tree planting standards and a street tree species list, and guidance related to soil volume and other enhancement to ensure tree health and survival. The UFMP also outlines solutions for tree and infrastructure conflicts to be implemented when existing trees can be preserved as well as in new plantings (Appendix B). 30 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 2
SECTION 2
SECTION 2
SECTION 2
Status of the
Urban Forest
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 31
Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.1 Tree Canopy Assessment

2.1.1 Why Canopy Cover Matters
Urban trees and vegetation provide a myriad of often overlooked benefits to the surrounding community (environmental services and benefits received from the City’s inventoried trees are further discussed in Section 2.2). Among other benefits, a robust canopy has the potential to reduce urban heat islands, improve air and stormwater quality, sequester and store carbon, improve aesthetic appearance and create a sense of place, and improve mental health and community wellbeing (McPherson 2016; White 2014). Low canopy cover can result in an increased vulnerability to pollution, extreme heat, and associated health issues.

The urban heat island effect occurs when urbanized areas experience higher temperatures relative to surrounding areas.

Structures, roads, and other infrastructure in the urban landscape absorb and re-emit the sun’s heat. Tree canopies reduce the urban heat island effect by lowering surface and air temperatures through shade and evapotranspiration (Loughner et al. 2012).

Surfaces may be 20°F to 45°F (11°F to 25°C) cooler under the shade of a tree than surfaces with no tree cover (EPA 2019). The combination of increased temperatures and emissions due to urban heat islands contributes to compromised human health and comfort, such as heat-related illness and heat-related deaths (EPA 2020).

The Environmental Protection Agency CalEnviroScreen 3.0 online tool identifies California communities that are disproportionately burdened by pollution and have a higher vulnerability to the health effects of pollution (OEHHA 2018). The tool uses environmental, health, and socioeconomic information to identify the inequities associated with pollution throughout the state, and each census tract is given a CalEnviroScreen score. The score is given in percentage ranges, with 1%–10% being the least vulnerable and 91%–100% being the most vulnerable. As shown in Figure 2, the census tract that comprises the majority of Willits has a score of 40-45% and the remaining portion of the City has a score of 31%-40%. While these scores are not extremely alarming, as a severely disadvantaged community, Willits’s population characteristics and increased exposure to pollutants could lead to more problematic results in the future.

Canopy cover can have a positive impact in disadvantaged communities by reducing the pollution burden and heat exposure as well as other social inequities. Urban trees can reduce the urban heat island effect by cooling the micro-climate through evapotranspiration and shade. This cooling effect also reduces energy costs by reducing demand for indoor air conditioning, which also reduces air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. Trees also reduce air pollution by absorbing pollutants through leaf stomata; intercepting and storing particulates on leaf, branch and bark surfaces; and sequestering CO2 (USFS 2006). In addition to these environmental services, trees have been found to positively impact productivity, mental health, health and wellbeing, and economic performance in commercial areas (Wolf 2014, 2015). As such, equitable canopy cover throughout Willits’s neighborhoods, commercial areas and transportation corridors is essential to maintaining a viable and livable City. 32 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 2 | Status of the Urban Forest
Figure 2. CalEnviroScreen Results
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Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.1.2 Historical Canopy Cover
Tree canopy cover is defined as the area of land covered by a tree’s leaves, branches and stems when viewed from above and is indicative of the level of environmental services a community receives from its trees. Willits is centrally located in Mendocino County and is commonly known as
the “Gateway to the Redwoods” due to its proximity to the County’s expansive redwood forests. Prior to settlement in the 1850s, Willits’s landcover primarily consisted of forestland and rangelands, including grasslands and
dense clusters of riparian woodland habitat along water courses. Early settlers prospered through ranching and the budding timber industry. As the City developed along Main Street throughout the 1900s, railroads, highway and local transportation systems were constructed, connecting Willits to the surrounding region (Willits Chamber of Commerce
2021). Today, Willits is surrounded by agricultural lands, rural residential and open rangelands and forestlands within Mendocino County.

2.1.3 Current Canopy Cover Estimate
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) completed a spatial imagery analysis of canopy cover for all cities in California for the years of 2012 and 2018, which determined California’s statewide urban tree canopy cover to be 19% (USFS n.d.). The canopy cover analysis herein utilizes the publicly available USFS data, which is available as GIS data and through an Urban Tree Canopy Viewer. The Urban Tree Canopy Viewer indicates the Willits area has a 2018 tree canopy percentage ranging from 25% to 41%, and a higher canopy cover ranging from 42% to 86% in the forested areas directly north and south of the City (USFS n.d.). However, the Viewer uses the 2012 US Census Bureau urban area boundaries, which includes areas outside of City limits, such as the unincorporated community of Brooktrails. Brooktrails is located northwest of the City within a heavily forested area, and likely skewed the canopy cover results to reflect a higher percentage. Thus, further analysis was conducted of the 2018 canopy cover data, excluding areas outside City limits, which revealed that the tree canopy cover within Willits’s developed footprint is approximately 16% (Figure 3).
34 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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Date: 6/23/2021 - Last saved by: bdokkestul - Path: Z:\Projects\j1269401\MAPDOC\DOCUMENT\CanopyAnalysis\Figure1_CanopyCover.mxd CanopyCover
WillitsUrbanForestManagementPlan
SOURCE:USGS2018,Bing(Accessed2021)
01,0002,000
n
Feet
WillitsCityBoundary
CensusTractBoundary
CanopyCover
FIGURE1
Limitations with this approach also exist because it excludes the southeastern portion of the City near Haehl Creek, as well as clusters of tree cover in the northeast and southwestern portions of the City, as these areas are outside of the urban area boundary. As such, the 16% canopy cover is
representative of the more heavily developed areas of the City where canopy cover, or lack thereof, can significantly affect the benefits and services provided to the community.

The developed footprint of the City has a relatively low canopy cover when compared to the surrounding forested lands. This is not uncommon in cities surrounded by forestlands that have been host to industrial uses (including the lumber industry) since their inception. Similarly, the Viewer indicates that most of the City of Fort Bragg has an Urban Tree Canopy cover in the range of 15-24%, while exterior portions of the City are in the 42-86% canopy cover range. Similar to Willits, the exterior forested areas of Fort Bragg have dense canopy cover, while canopy cover decreases in developed parts of the City.

Generally, cities located in forested areas with ideal growing conditions may achieve up to 40% to 60% canopy cover, while cities in desert and grassland areas should aim for 15% to 20% canopy cover, respectively (Leahy 2017). Due to variations in development densities, land use patterns, ordinances, climate, and growing conditions, each municipality contains unique circumstances and opportunities for canopy cover, which make it difficult to broadly prescribe canopy cover goals. The historical landscape of a city plays a large role in determining canopy cover targets. Developed into the rangelands and foothills of Little Lake Valley, it is expected that Willits’s canopy cover would be less than the surrounding mountainous
forestlands. Therefore, canopy cover goals must be made in consideration of the historical land cover conditions of the City.

Figure 3. Canopy Cover
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Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.1.4 Increasing Canopy Cover
Tables 9 and 10 provide estimated planting scenarios for how many new trees will need to be added to increase canopy cover to the percentages identified in the tables. For the City to achieve a 30% canopy cover, it will need to add approximately 5,142 trees with a 50-foot-wide canopy spread. This would require planting 182 trees with a 50-foot-wide canopy spread every year for 30 years. Additional planting scenarios have been calculated in alignment with CAL FIRE goals for the City to achieve a 10% increase in canopy cover by 2030 and a 35% increase in canopy cover by 2050, as shown in Table 11. A 10% increase from the existing 16% canopy cover would result in an overall canopy cover of 18% in the City, while a 35% increase in canopy cover would result in an overall canopy cover of 22%. Assuming tree planting efforts would begin in the year 2022, achieving these canopy cover goals would require planting 76 50-foot-wide canopy trees per year until the year 2050.

These calculated planting scenarios do not account for the time it will take for trees to grow and achieve their full 50-foot canopy spread, meaning it could take closer to 30 to 40 years from the time of planting for the City to realize these canopy cover goals.

Additionally, tree removals will further extend the timeline to increase canopy cover and the total number of trees needed to reach canopy goals. A recent study of urban tree mortality found that the annual survival rate among planting cohorts of evenaged urban trees ranged from 2.8% to 9.3%, with variations based on taxa and site characteristics (Hilbert 2019). Thus, an average 6% mortality rate has been added to the calculated planting scenarios shown in Table 10 and Table 11.

Table 9. Total Number of Trees Needed to Increase Canopy Cover Total Canopy Total Number of Trees by Canopy Spread
20 ft 35 ft 50 ft 75 ft
18% 4,010 1,309 641 285
20% 8,699 2,839 1,392 618
25% 20,421 6,665 3,267 1451
30% 32,143 10,492 5,142 2284
35% 43,865 14,318 7,017 3118
40% 55,587 18,144 8,892 3951
Note: ft2 = square feet.
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SECTION 2 | Status of the Urban Forest
Expanding canopy cover would require significant effort from the City and residents. Based on the City’s tree inventory (further discussed in Section 2.2), there are 136 available planting locations in the City. Planting each of these vacant sites with a 75- foot canopy spread tree would result in an increase in canopy cover of less than 1% and would achieve a total canopy cover of approximately 17%. The limited amount of available planting locations emphasizes the need to prioritize efforts on maintaining the existing canopy, replacing trees that are removed and advantageous planting during redevelopment efforts as outlined in City planning documents discussed in Section 1.4. Planting opportunities to increase canopy cover will occur along Main Street and the downtown area as the area is redeveloped. Implementing trees into the landscape will require coordination with Caltrans to pursue transportation and pedestrian improvements along South Main Street (Highway 20), where the City does not have jurisdiction.

Table 10. Total Number of Trees Needed to Plant per Year for 30 Years to Increase Canopy Cover Total Canopy Total Number of Trees by Canopy Spread
20 ft 35 ft 50 ft 75 ft
18% 142 46 23 10
20% 307 100 49 22
25% 722 236 115 51
30% 1136 371 182 81
35% 1550 506 248 110
40% 1964 641 314 140
Table 11. Total Number of Trees Needed to Increase Canopy Cover by Percent Total Canopy Percent Increase from
Existing Years to Goal Total Number of Trees by Canopy Spread 20 ft 35 ft 50 ft 75 ft
18% 10% 8 3819 1246 611 271
22% 35% 28 13366 4363 2138 950
Number of Trees to Plant per Year to reach goals by 2030 and 2050 477 156 76 34 Note: ft2 = square feet.

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Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2
Expanding canopy cover will also be dependent on residents to plant and maintain healthy canopy trees. Gaining resident support for growing trees on private property may be challenging, considering the region’s wildfire risks and perceived safety associated with trees near habitable structures. Activities and strategies to educate and engage residents are further discussed in Chapter 4, Community Engagement.

Educational outreach opportunities to provide residents and business owners with guidance on wildfire safe landscaping and defensible space, as well as species selection for resilient and fire adapted species. Wildfire risk in Willits is further discussed in Section 2.2.1.2.

2.2 City Tree Inventory Methodology
Dudek conducted an inventory of City-managed trees over three days in September 2020. The scope of the inventory included collecting tree location and arboricultural attribute information of all City-owned trees within the City limits including public sidewalks, parkway strips, streets (Baechtel Road, Central Street, Highway 20, Main Street, Mendocino Avenue, School Street, Wood Street, and Interior Wood Street) medians, rights-of-way, parks (Babcock Park, Recreation Grove Park, Bud Snyder Park), and other accessible City-owned property (Table 12).

Tree location mapping was completed using a smart phone loaded with Esri’s Collector App. The arborist used an external SXblue II + receiver to record tree location data to sub-meter accuracy. Coordinates of each identified site in the inventory were uploaded to Esri’s ArcGIS mapping software to generate maps for use by the City, presented in Appendix A of the inventory (Dudek 2020).

Table 12 describes the attributes of each tree and site that were collected to meet the requirements of a CAL FIRE Urban and Community Forestry grant-funded inventory The inventory resulted in 425 trees and 136 vacant sites identified (Table 13). The following sections present an analysis of the City inventory data. 38 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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Table 12. Attributes Collected for the City of Willits’s CAL FIRE-Funded Tree Inventory Attribute Description
Tree number The unique number assigned to each site in the inventory Mapping coordinate X and Y coordinates of the tree location Block side Cardinal direction of site location on the block (N, S, E, W) Side of lot Front, side, or rear of lot
Location The tree’s physical location in relation to the public Right of Way and/or public space.

Species Trees will be identified scientific and common name Diameter Tree trunk diameter at standard height (4.5 feet above ground) recorded to the nearest 1-inch Stem Count Number of main stems up to a total of 6 stems Condition The condition of each tree ranging from Very Good, Good, Fair, Poor, Critical, and dead Maintenance needs Maintenance needs for each site, including priority for removal (1-3), priority for prune (1-3), large and small tree routine pruning, training prune, stump removal, and plant tree
Clearance required Visibility or clearance issues for pedestrians, vehicles, signs, or traffic signals. Potential clearance issues for vacant sites.

Hardscape damage Damage to sidewalks and curbs by tree roots Overhead utilities Overhead utilities that may conflict with trees or vacant sites Grow space The areas where the tree or vacant site exists, including tree lawn (T), well/pit (W), median (M), raised planter (P), open/ unrestricted (O), island (I), and untrained area
Space size Narrowest dimension of grow space (in feet)
Vacant sites Potential tree planting site where no tree currently is planted Comments/notes Additional information regarding observed disease, insect, mechanical damage, etc.

Table 13. Willits Tree Inventory and Vacant Site Locations Tree Location Number of Trees Number of Vacant Sites
Street Tree 266 127
Park Tree 159 9
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Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.2.1 Species Diversity
The species diversity of a city’s tree inventory helps understand its overall resilience to threats. Because biological diversity is often regarded as the basis for ecological stability (Tilman and Downing 1994), cities with uniform tree species are more likely to suffer from catastrophic loss when invasive pests and pathogens enter a landscape or when significant weather events impact a community. California acquires a new invasive pest approximately once every 60 days (Sutherland 2014). While not all introduced invasive species result in a destructive loss to urban forests or agriculture, an important strategy to prepare for the next introduced pest or pathogen is to foster a diverse urban forest.

Generally, an urban forest sustainability metric is that a city’s tree inventory should contain no more than 10% of any one species, 20% of any one genus, or 30% of any one family (Miller and Miller 1991; Richards 1993; Ball 2007). Though these recommendations are not absolute, they provide useful guidelines to measure the vulnerability of the City’s tree population. To further ensure the City managed tree population is resilient to threats, the inventory was analyzed using a sustainability metric of containing no more than 5% of any one species, 10% of any one genus, or 20% of any one family.

Willits’s City managed tree inventory consists of 425 trees, composed of 16 families, 27 genera, and 41 species. The top 10 tree genera make up 91% of City-owned trees (Table 14). While seven of the top genera fall within the 10% recommendation, Quercus, Acer, and Pyrus all exceed the recommendation and represent 61% of the inventory. The top 10 species found in the City comprise 79% of the inventory, and the top five species (Quercus lobata, Pyrus calleryana, Fraxinus latifolia, Acer rubrum, and Pistacia chinensis) make up 61% of the inventory and each are in excess of 5% (Table 15). From a species diversity prospective, the City’s tree inventory is lacking diversity and may be vulnerable to threats to its health and sustainability.

It is important to note that the species diversity metrics are presented as a guideline for species diversity, and a goal to which the City could consider working towards. The guidelines are not intended to justify the removal of healthy trees that are more frequently represented in the inventory. Rather, they can help the City plan for removal and replacement of mature trees that have reached the end of their life span, with other species that are less frequently represented in the inventory. 40 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
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Table 14. Top 10 Genera in Willits’s Tree Inventory
Genus Diversity
Sustainability Goal: No Genus Greater than 10% of Inventory Rank Genus Number of trees % of Inventory
1 Quercus 145 34%
2 Acer 65 15%
3 Pyrus 49 12%
4 Fraxinus 42 10%
5 Sequoia 18 4%
6 Ulmus 23 5%
7 Pistacia 22 5%
8 Platanus 13 3%
9 Pinus 8 2%
10 Sequioadendron 6 1%
Total 391 92%
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020)
Sustainability Goal: Meets Goal Does Not Meet Goal
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Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2
Table 15. Top 10 Species in Willits’s Tree Inventory
Species Diversity Sustainability Goal: No Species Greater than 5% of Inventory Rank Botanical Name Common Name Tree Stature at
Maturity Number of Trees % of inventory
1 Quercus lobata Valley oak Large 124 29%
2 Pyrus calleryana Bradford Pear Medium 49 12%
3 Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash Large 32 8%
4 Acer rubrum Red maple Large 31 7%
5 Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache Medium 22 5%
6 Acer buergerianum Trident Maple Medium 20 5%
7 Sequoia sempervirens Coast redwood Large 18 4%
8 Quercus kelloggii Black oak Large 14 3%
9 Platanus occidentalis American sycamore Large 13 3%
10 Ulmus pumila Siberian Elm Large 11 3%
Total 334 79%
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020)
Sustainability Goal: Meets Goal Does Not Meet Goal
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2.2.1.1 Climate Adaptability
Climate change is predicted to cause substantial
negative impacts to commonly planted street tree
species in California (McBride and Lacan 2018). Over
the past century, average maximum temperatures
in California have increased between 1.6°F to 2.5°F,
and these temperatures are expected to continue
to rise over the coming years. In Mendocino County,
increases in temperature are predicted to reach 5⁰F
by 2100, and snow pack will decline to nearly zero
by 2090 (Maizlish et al. 2017). Longer, more intense
periods of drought and more variable periods of
precipitation with increased flooding (Swain et al.
2018), will make finding additional irrigation water or funding for irrigation improvements for street trees a
challenge (McBride and Lacan 2018).

The City will need to critically examine its street
tree palette to understand if it is prepared for these
predicted weather and climate changes. Recent
research by McBride and Lacan (2018) provides
helpful findings that can help guide the City as it plans for its hotter, dryer future. The study selected 16
cities to represent 16 different climate and weather
conditions throughout California. It then identified
a study city with a cooler climate to one with a
climate that represents what the cooler study city is
predicted to experience over the next 100 years. The
City-managed tree inventory of each city was then
compared to understand if there were differences
between the street tree species represented in each
city. Figure 4. Climate Comparison Cities Adapted from McBride and Lacan 2018 CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 43
Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2
While there are elevation and temperature differences, Ukiah is identified as the study city that is most similar to Willits in climate and weather conditions. The tree inventory of Ukiah was compared to the tree inventory of Fresno, as Fresno currently experiences climate and weather conditions that Ukiah will experience over the next 100 years. Of Ukiah’s 23 most common street tree species, nine were absent from Fresno. Further, tree species that are either absent from the hotter comparison city or show signs of being in poor health due to water needs or heat factors include Bradford pear, Oregon ash, red maple, and redwood.

Collectively, these trees make up 30.56% of the City’s inventory (Table 16) and indicate the potential for a gradual decline of tree canopy cover over time.

2.2.1.2 Wildfire Risk
Climate change has also resulted in increased severity and frequency of wildfires, which is particularly of concern to those who live in the wildland urban interface (WUI). As a community that abuts forestland, much of Willits and the surrounding unincorporated areas are in the WUI and could be at risk of wildfire (County of Mendocino 2021). CAL FIRE identifies the peripheral areas of the City as being within a Moderate Fire Hazard Severity Zone (FHSZ), with some portions of the City identified as High FHSZ, and the municipal airport property identified as High and Very High FHSZ (Figure 5) (CAL FIRE 2007). Surrounding State Responsibility Areas are forested areas classified as Moderate and High FHSZ.

The existing wildfire risk presents challenges faced by the community. Most recently, Willits narrowly avoided a community evacuation due to the Oak Fire in September 2020. Some residents in particularly vulnerable wildfire risk areas have implemented wildfire safe landscaping. For these residents, tree management and species selection require additional consideration to ensure homes have fire resilient landscaping and defensible space. This could impact the City’s overall canopy cover as residents may need to remove trees to achieve sufficient defensible space. Additionally, some residents may choose to remove trees due to the fear of increased risk. During City interviews, stakeholders expressed that they are concerned with planting trees on their property because they do not want to increase their fire risk. These sentiments reflect a public outreach opportunity to educate residents Table 16. Tree Species In Willits’s Inventory Predicted To Be Heat or Water Sensitive Scientific Name Common Name % of inventory
Pyrus calleryana Bradford Pear 12%
Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 8%
Acer rubrum Red maple 7%
Sequoia sempervirens Redwood 4%
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about how to properly implement defensible
space and fire safe landscaping and how to
best retain canopy cover without sacrificing
safety.

Appendix D includes a list of highly
flammable tree species that should be
avoided when choosing species to plant.

These species pose a risk due to their rough
or peeling bark; production of large amounts
of litter; vegetation that contains oils,
resin, wax, or pitch; large amounts of dead
material in the plant; or plantings with a high
dead to live fuel ratio. Based on the Willits
inventory, only Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga
menziesii) overlaps with the undesirable
species list, and only one individual is owned
by the City.

Willits
DRAFT Fire Hazard Severity Zones in LRA
Government Code 51175-89 direct the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) to map areas of very high fire hazard within Local Responsibility Areas (LRA). Mapping of the areas, referred to as Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones (VHFHSZ), is based on relevant factors such as fuels, terrain, and weather. VHFHSZ maps were initially developed in the mid-1990s but are now being updated based on improved Fire Hazard Severity Zones science, mapping techniques, and data.

Other Very High The California Building Commission adopted the Wildland-Urban Interface codes in late 2005 to be effective LRA Very High in 2008. These new codes include provisions to improve the ignition resistance of buildings, especially from firebrands. The updated fire hazard severity zones will be used by building officials to determine LRA High Other High appropriate construction materials for new buildings in the Wildland-Urban Interface. The updated zones will also be used by property owners to comply with natural hazards disclosure requirements at time of property Other Moderate sale and 100 foot defensible space clearance. It is likely that the fire hazard severity zones will be used for updates This map was developed using data products such as parcel and city boundaries provided by 01 LRA Moderate Miles to the safety element of general plans. local government agencies. In certain cases, this includes copyrighted geographic information.

LRA Unzoned Other Unzoned This map has been created by CAL FIRE's Fire and Resource Assessment Program (FRAP) using data and models The maps are for display purposes only - questions and requests related to parcel or city 0 1.5 describing development patterns, potential fuels over a 30-50 year time horizon, expected fire behavior, boundary data should be directed to the appropriate local government entity. Kilometers and expected burn probabilities to quantify the likelihood and nature of vegetation fire exposure (including firebrands) to new construction. Details on the project and specific modeling methodology can be City Boundary found at http://frap.cdf.ca.gov/projects/hazard/methods.htm.

Projec
Sca
tion Albers, NAD 1983 Parcels The version dated September 17, 2007 of the map shown here represents draft VHFHSZs within LRA, for review and comment by local government. le 1: 16000
County Boundary An interactive system for viewing map data is hosted by the UC Center for Fire at at 36" x 36" http://firecenter.berkeley.edu/fhsz/ October 11, 2007 Questions can be directed to:

Kathleen Schori (Northern Region) (530) 472-3121 [email protected].

Sass Barton (Southern Region) (559) 243-4130 [email protected].

The State of California and the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection make no representations Arnold Schwarzenegger, Governor, MAP ID: Willits or warranties regarding the accuracy of data or maps. Neither the State nor the Department shall be State of California liable under any circumstances for any direct, special, incidental, or consequential damages with Mike Chrisman, Secretary for Resources, respect to any claim by any user or third party on account of, or arising from, the use of data or maps. The Resources Agency Ruben Grijalva, Director, Obtain FRAP maps, data, metadata and publications on the Internet at http://frap.cdf.ca.gov Department of Forestry and Fire Protection DATA SOURCES For more information, contact CAL FIRE-FRAP, PO Box 944246, Sacramento, CA 94244-2460, (916) 327-3939. CAL FIRE Fire Hazard Severity Zones (FHSZL07_1) Figure 5. Fire Hazard Severity Zones in LRA
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 45
Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.2.2 Age Distribution
Understanding the overall age distribution of the City’s urban forest can better prepare arborists, policy makers, and maintenance workers for funding and management decisions needed as the trees age (Morgenroth et al. 2020). For most trees, a year’s worth of growth is reflected as a ring inside the tree’s trunk. When a tree is removed, the growth rings can be counted to accurately determine its age. If a tree is healthy and removal is not warranted, the most common and least invasive method to approximate the age of the tree is by measuring the trunk diameter at 4.5 feet above the ground (diameter at standard height [DSH]). Since trees vary in size and growth patterns, using DSH to determine age can only be considered an estimate. Faster growing trees may develop a larger DSH in a shorter time frame than slower growing trees, and mature trees with slower annual growth may be older than the DSH reflects.

Richards (1983) established ideal DSH distributions for street trees analyzing age classes of urban forests. The rationale behind Richards’ distributions ensures that an urban forest has a population of immature trees (40%) to replace failing or aging ones, young (30%) and middle-aged (20%) trees to provide the bulk of economic and environmental benefits, and relatively fewer mature trees (10%) that have most of their life behind them but provided significant environmental benefits for many years.

Table 17 shows the age distribution of all trees in the City inventory compared to Richards’ recommended DSH distributions.

Much of the City’s inventory is aging and mature, with 22% more mature trees than recommended by Richards. With half as many immature trees as recommended, the City may not have a population of newly planted trees to adequately replace mature trees as they reach the end of their life. At a minimum, the City will need to replace trees as they are removed to ensure a continuation of environmental services. If the age trends continue how they are now without increased tree planting, the City can expect the tree’s environmental services to decline as the population becomes senescent and requires removal.

Table 17. Age Distribution of Willits’s Tree Inventory
Age Category DSH (inches) Number of Trees Recommended Percentage of Tree Inventory % of inventory Immature 0-6 83 40% 20%
Young 7-18 165 30% 39%
Middle-aged 19-24 39 20% 9%
Mature 25+ 138 10% 32%
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020); Richards 1983 46 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 2 | Status of the Urban Forest
Considering age distributions by species in the inventory can also help the City plan for the maintenance of specific species (Figure 6). Valley oak and redwood trees are primarily mature and large stature trees. While there are not many middle-aged or immature trees in the inventory, those that do exist are trident maple and Oregon ash. This indicates that maintaining these tree species may require less frequent pruning as they have an established crown, but when pruning is required, it will be more expensive and require the expertise of a contractor who can perform large tree work. These trees will also require inspection by a certified arborist who is tree risk assessment qualified to assess tree health and risk and make recommendations to maintain tree safety.

Conversely, the City’s Bradford pear, red maple, and Siberian elm are mostly young, and have not yet developed a mature crown.

Maintenance needs for these trees will be focused on formative pruning to help limit structural defects as trees mature. It may also include supplemental watering and establishment care to promote root growth and tree health. This level of maintenance is less costly than large tree pruning and is essential to establishing trees in an urban landscape. 0 20
40 60
80 100
120
140
Valley oak
Bradford pear
Oregon ash
Red maple
Chinese pistache
Trident maple
Redwood
Black oak
American sycamore
Siberian Elm
Number of trees
Immature Young Middle-Aged Mature
Figure 6. Age Distribution of Willits’s Top 10 Inventory Species CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 47
Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2
Recent work by Morgenroth and collaborators (2020) helps justify that, because a large percentage of the tree inventory may soon reach the removal and replacement stage of their lifecycle, the City should plan to increase its maintenance budget to proactively manage and foster a sustainable urban forest. The City cannot speed up the aging process of trees, but it can control the schedule of how and when trees are planted to protect City resources for future maintenance needs. Over the next five years, the City will need to implement budget considerations related to pruning, maintenance, risk assessment, and removals. In the long-term over the next 50 years, the City’s management efforts should be focused on the successful establishment of immature and young trees, including proper irrigation, mulching, and soil conditions.

2.2.3 Health Composition
In general, trees that are healthy with good trunk and branch structure have a lower risk of failure and contribute to a safer City.

To determine the health composition, arborists conducting the City’s tree inventory rated trees on a scale of dead, critical, poor, fair, good, and very good based on visible characteristics of health and canopy structure (Table 18). It is important to note that tree condition ratings were determined based on a visual assessment of trees. Additional health characteristics determined by diagnostic testing such as internal decay probing and root excavations were not conducted.

Table 18. Tree Condition Categories
Tree Condition Ratings
Very good 100–90%
Good 80%
Fair 60%
Poor 40%
Critical 20%
Dead 0%
Table 19. Health Composition of the City’s Tree Inventory Condition Number of Trees Percent
Very good 63 15%
Good 122 29%
Fair 180 42%
Poor 53 12%
Critical 1 0.5%
Dead 6 1%
Source: CAL FIRE 2019 Total 425 100%
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020)
Table 19 shows the health composition of Willits’s tree inventory varies, with 45% rated as very good or good, and 42% as fair. Sixty trees (14%) are rated poor, critical, or dead, which represent a significant portion of the inventory that exhibits signs of declining vigor. The main reasons for the poor and critical ratings include signs of internal decay, topped or heavily pruned trees, and damage to the trunk. Understanding tree condition based on location (streets or parks) can also help identify different maintenance needs based on site conditions.
48 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 2 | Status of the Urban Forest
Table 20 shows that nearly 70% of park trees are rated fair, poor, critical or dead, compared to 45% of street trees. As previously discussed, Rec Grove Park is also mostly comprised of mature valley oak trees that are mature and are experiencing decline. These data help underscore that park trees should be prioritized for management, maintenance, and arborist review.

Table 20. Health Composition of Park and Street Trees by Age Condition
Park Trees Street Trees
Number of trees Percent Number of Trees Percent
Very good 26 14% 37 16%
Good 32 17% 90 39%
Fair 109 57% 71 30%
Poor 22 11% 31 13%
Critical 1 0.5% 0 0%
Dead 2 1% 4 2%
Total 192 — 223 —
Source: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020)

2.2.4 Environmental Benefits
A city’s urban forest has a direct impact on the health and well-being of its residents. Trees improve the quality of city streets by providing shade and cooling and have been linked to mental health benefits such as stress reduction and elevated mood (AstellBurt and Feng 2019). Quality green space within a city can also help build communities, increase neighbor interactions, and improve social connections (Kuo et al. 1998). In addition to these social and physical health benefits, trees provide a significant number of environmental services and benefits and hold real economic value for the City.

To help quantify how important and valuable trees are to communities, the U.S. Forest Service developed the software i-Tree Eco (USFS 2020). The program uses individual tree characteristics provided in an inventory to determine environmental benefits of a city’s street trees, both in terms of quantity and economic value. The estimated environmental services provided by trees in the inventory are presented in Table 21. Carbon sequestration is the amount of carbon the City’s inventoried trees remove from air.

Avoided runoff represents how much rainfall is being diverted from the stormwater management system by the canopy of trees, and air pollution removal includes removing particulate matter and surface level ozone.

CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 49

2.2.5 Economic Value
The structural value of the City’s tree inventory represents what it would cost to replace all trees with the same species, size, and health condition (Table 22). The functional value represents the annual value of the environmental services that the trees provide.

Table 22. Financial Value of Willits Trees
Value Description Asset Amount Per-Tree Value
Structural Tree replacement cost $3.05 Million $7,059
Functional Value based on the services trees perform $90,463 $213 Sources: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and i-Tree Analysis (USFS 2020).

Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2
Table 21. Annual Environmental Services and Benefits Provided by City-Managed Trees Service Annual Environmental Benefit Annual Environmental Impact Annual Economic Value Carbon Storage (carbon
held in tree) 527.7 tons
The carbon stored in the City’s urban
forest is equivalent to the carbon
emitted from 164 cars driven for 1
year.
$90,000
Carbon Sequestration
(carbon removed from air) 4.96 tons
The carbon removed from the City’s
air by the urban forest is equivalent to
an average passenger vehicle driving
10,693 miles.
$846
Avoided Runoff 6,766 ft3
This benefit is the equivalent to the 1.5
times the amount of water the average
American home uses in 1 year.
$452
While the environmental services of the Willits tree inventory are important, they do not reflect the entire value of the urban forest experienced by communities. The environmental services of trees are also felt on a local, street-by-street or home-by-home basis, where tree canopies increase property values and provide shade, cooling, stormwater reduction, and increased public health outcomes. The services that Willits trees provide contribute directly to the quality of life in the City and are opportunities to encourage residents and business owners to participate in urban forest programs.

Sources: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and i-Tree Analysis (USFS 2020). 50 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 2 | Status of the Urban Forest
One indicator of urban forest sustainability is to have the top six species in the tree inventory with an RPI of 1.0 or greater. Table 21 shows that, except for valley oak and Oregon ash, eight species have an RPI that is greater than 1.0. While this metric shows a positive outlook for the City’s trees, valley oak makes up 30% of the inventory, and these trees have an RPI that is significantly lower than the rest of the inventory trees (0.20).

Table 23. Relative Performance Index of the Top 10 Species in the City’s Inventory Relative Performance Index (RPI) Goal: Top 6 Species Have an RPI Score of 1.0 or Higher Rank Botanical name Common name Number of Trees Rated
Good or Better
Percent of Trees Rated
Good or Better RPI
City Inventory 185 44% 1.00
1 Quercus lobate Valley oak 11 9% 0.20
2 Pyrus calleryana Bradford pear 22 45% 1.03
3 Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 7 22% 0.50
4 Acer rubrum Red maple 25 81% 1.85
5 Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache 18 82% 1.88
6 Acer buergerianum Trident maple 15 75% 1.72
7 Sequoia sempervirens Redwood 18 100% 2.30
8 Quercus kelloggii Black oak 9 64% 1.48
9 Platanus occidentalis American sycamore 11 85% 1.94
10 Ulmus pumila Siberian elm 7 64% 1.46
Sources: City of Willits Tree Inventory (Dudek 2020) and i-Tree Analysis (USFS 2020).

Sustainability Goal: Meets Goal Does Not Meet Goal

2.2.6 Relative Performance Index
Because the health composition of the City inventory does not indicate how individual tree species are performing, the relative performance index (RPI) for each species can help identify species that are doing well and species that may need further analysis to determine appropriate management actions to maintain vigor. Species RPI is calculated by taking the percentage of trees in a single species that were categorized in “good” condition and dividing it by the percentage of all trees in the inventory that were marked in “good” condition. Trees with an RPI of 1 or higher are performing as well or better than the entire population. Trees with an RPI less than 1 are performing worse the entire population. Below is an example, and the RPIs for the top 10 tree species in the inventory are presented in Table 23: Valley oak (9% good or better) ÷ All species (44% good or better) = 0.20 RPI CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 51
The trees with the highest importance values include valley oak, Bradford pear, and coast redwood. Valley oaks have the highest importance value of trees in the City inventory because they make up the highest percentage of the inventory and have large canopies. The importance value also highlights the increased value of large stature trees in comparison to medium or small stature trees. Although there are only 18 (4.24%) coast redwoods in the Willits inventory, they still provide the third highest importance value because they are large stature trees. Conversely, Bradford pears represent 11.6% of the City inventory but only

4.1% of the total leaf area, for an importance value that is slightly higher than the coast redwood The environmental conditions of the City have allowed for a high number of large stature trees to be planted that return an increased level of environmental services, and should continue to prioritize planting large tree species that are adapted to changing climate conditions to receive a high level of environmental benefits.

Status of the Urban Forest | SECTION 2

2.2.7 Importance Value
The importance value of trees is a metric calculated in the I-tree Eco online tool that combines the percentage of the species in the population of City-owned trees and its corresponding percentage of leaf area. These two percentages are added together to determine the importance value (Table 24). This metric is another way to measure the total value of a species in the City inventory to the overall urban forest.

Table 24. Ten Species with the Highest Importance Values in the Willits’s Tree Inventory Botanical name Common Name Tree Stature at
Maturity
Percent of
Inventory
Percent of Inventory’s
Leaf Area
Importance
Value
Quercus lobata Valley oak Large 29.5 44.6 74.1
Pyrus calleryana Bradford pear Medium 11.6 4.1 15.7
Sequoia sempervirens Coast redwood Large 4.3 9.9 14.2
Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash Large 7.6 6.1 13.7
Acer rubrum Red maple Large 7.4 4.0 11.3
Platanus x occidentalis American sycamore Large 3.1 6.5 9.6 Quercus kelloggii Black oak Large 3.3 2.5 5.8
Acer buergerianum Trident maple Medium 4.8 1.0 5.7
Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache Medium 5.2 0.5 5.7
Ulmus americana American elm Large 1.7 3.9 5.6
52 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 3
SECTION 3
SECTION 3
SECTION 3
Recreation
Grove Park
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 53
Recreation Grove Park | SECTION 3
Recreation Grove Park (the Rec Grove) serves as a vibrant community resource, offering resident and tourists a meeting ground, shaded picnic tables, playgrounds, and barbeque facilities. Several community events and festivals anchor the community to the Rec Grove, including the Willits Rodeo, Frontier Days’ events, 4th of July Parade, Music in the Park, and the Farmer’s Market..

During UMFP interviews, residents, business owners, and City staff consistently expressed the value the park contributes to the community identify, and the desire for it to be preserved.

3.1 Historic Management and Budget Issues
More than 25% of the City’s tree inventory is planted in Rec Grove. Of these trees, nearly 90% are Valley Oaks (Quercus lobata) that are mature and with varying health conditions and a site history of tree failures (see Section 3.2, Rec Grove Tree Profile). City staff stated in departmental interviews that in recent years, 1 to 2 trees fall in Rec Grove annually. On one occasion in 2019, a valley oak failed after a windstorm and struck a park facility structure. At the time of the failure, a Boy Scout troop was inside the structure conducting an activity. No one was injured in the accident, but the failure resulted in more than $25,000 in property damage, which represented the entirety of Public Works’ annual budget. As a result, trees that were scheduled to be pruned that year or reviewed by an arborist had their maintenance deferred.

The health condition and site history of the trees, coupled with the frequency of residents to use the park and existing structures, suggests that some trees in the park may have an elevated level of risk. Over the past several years, Public Works staff have attempted to hire consulting arborists to conduct a risk assessment of the park’s trees, but persistent budget challenges have slowed or prevented completing an assessment of all trees and implementing arborist recommendations. As of 2021, approximately one-third of the trees remain unassessed for tree risk with appropriate recommendations to mitigate any observed defect. Understanding the risk associated with trees in Rec Grove Park will give City the Public Works and Planning Departments tree managers the information needed to make decisions on investing limited City resources. The initial costs to complete the assessment can be offset by prioritizing management actions on the most urgent tree issues to prevent the need for more costly emergency tree work.

Another maintenance issue associated with City trees occurs with utility lines. Public Works also contends with utility companies such as Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) to ensure disruptions to service do not occur. In recent years, PG&E requested that the City remove more than seven valley oaks and ash trees, and required several other oaks to be severely headed or topped because the trees conflicted with the utilities. The costs of removal were borne by the Public Works budget, and because they were not planned for, needed to be allocated from additional sources. 54 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 3 | Recreation Grove Park

3.2 Rec Grove Park Tree Profile

3.2.1 Site
According to Public Works staff, the Rec Grove is located on a flood plain. The turf landscape in which the trees are planted is irrigated, and the trees have become accustomed to the frequently available water. Over their lifespan, the trees have developed shallow root systems that increase the trees’ vulnerability to windthrow and/or other tree failures.

3.2.2 Species Diversity
The inventory of the Rec Grove consists of 110 trees composed of 4 families, 4 genera, and 5 species. Valley oak (Quercus lobata) comprises 89% of the Rec Grove trees (Table 25). While the species diversity rules that were used to analyze the whole inventory are less applicable for this comparison, it is important to note that nearly the entirety of the Rec Grove’s trees consist of one species. Since the park is relatively small, it is not always concerning to have limited species diversity. However, trees of the same species typically respond similarly to abiotic factors such as drought, over saturation, poor site conditions, and wind, and biotic factors such as pests and pathogen infestation. Because so many of Willits’s trees are planted at the Rec Grove, it is possible that a catastrophic event could jeopardize a significant percentage of Willits’s trees at one time. As such, the City should prioritize that an arborist review be completed of all Rec Grove park trees to determine the level of risk associated with trees in the park.

Table 25. Species Diversity of Trees at Rec Grove Park
Botanical Name Common Name Number of Trees % of Park Inventory % of City Inventory Quercus lobata Valley oak 98 89% 23%
Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 7 6% 1.6%
Morus alba White mulberry 2 2% 0.5%
Aesculus hippocastanum Horsechestnut 2 2% 0.5%
Quercus kelloggii Black oak 1 1% 0.2%
Total 110 100% 25.9%
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Recreation Grove Park | SECTION 3
Table 26. Condition of Trees at Rec Grove Park.

Botanical Name Common Name
Tree Condition
Very good Good Fair Critical Poor Dead
Quercus lobata Valley oak 0 10 76 1 11 0
Fraxinus latifolia Oregon ash 0 1 3 0 3 0
Morus alba White mulberry 0 0 2 0 0 0
Aesculus hippocastanum Horsechestnut 0 0 2 0 0 0
Quercus kelloggii Black oak 0 1 0 0 0 0
Total 0 12 83 1 14 0
Table 27. Age Distribution of Trees at Rec Grove Park
Age Category DSH (Inches) Recommended Percentages (Richards 1983) Number of Trees Percentage Immature 0-6 40% 3 3%
Young 7-18 30% 4 4%
Middle-aged 19-24 20% 21 19%
Mature 25+ 10% 82 75%

3.2.3 Tree Condition & Health

3.2.4 Age Distribution
Table 26 shows the health composition of Willits’s tree inventory varies, with 11% as good, 75% as fair, and 13% as critical or poor.

The inventory also revealed that 24% of trees had cavities, injuries, visible internal rot, or deadwood that indicate declining health and possible tree failure risk.

The age distribution of trees at the Rec Grove is concerning when compared to the recommended percentages. Over 75% percent of the trees in the Rec Grove are mature, and using data from the previous section they are nearly all valley oaks in fair or poor condition (Table 27). Of the trees that do not have obvious maladies, the City can assume that the bulk of the trees may begin to senesce and reach the end of their life span on a similar time frame. The City should proactively plan for strategic removals based on arborist reviews, robust community engagement, and a new planting plan that selects and prioritizes species of trees that are climate and fire adapted, site appropriate, and utility friendly. 56 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 4
SECTION 4
SECTION 4
SECTION 4
Community
Engagement
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 57
Community Engagement | SECTION 4
Meaningful community engagement is essential to developing a UFMP that reflects the goals, needs, and priorities of the City’s residents and business owners. During the UFMP development process, the City and the consultant team conducted community engagement activities to better understand the Willits community members’ views about trees, and how these perceptions affect the urban forest.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and evolving safety protocols, community engagement activities were conducted virtually through online platforms. Direct conversations occurred through community meetings and stakeholder interviews to inform the UFMP and refine project goals to reflect the community’s values. The online and media engagement included an online public survey and community meetings. The public survey was created to identify the public’s perception and understanding of the City’s trees, and to offer a space for public feedback as the City develops its UFMP. The following chapter details the approach, process, and results of UFMP community engagement.

4.1 Public Survey
An online survey was created to identify the public’s perception and understanding of the City’s trees, and to offer a space for public feedback as the City develops its UFMP. The 22-question survey was open between March 7, 2021 and April 20, 2021, and was distributed through various City social media outlets, local newspapers, outreach events, and communications sent by City staff. The survey was offered in English only, and major themes of the survey questions included the following:
• The attitudes and feelings respondents have towards trees • What respondents know about trees and how to maintain them • Concerns of tree health and infrastructure
• How willing respondents would be to support policies that protect trees on private property In total, 79 survey responses were recorded. Of the respondents, 87.14% live in Willits, 12.6% work in Willits, and 8 did not answer (Table 28). Table 29 highlights other relevant survey respondent demographics, and how they compare to City data from the US Census Bureau. The survey respondents are skewed towards white, older, and single-family homeowners, than the demographics of the City’s residents. During the implementation phase of the UFMP, it will be important to continue to outreach to City residents to ensure that diverse prospective are heard and valued. 58 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 4 | Community Engagement
Table 28. Percentage of Survey Respondent Who Live or Work in Willits Neighborhood Percent of Respondents
Live in Willits 87.14%
Work in Willits 12.86%
Did Not Answer 8
Table 29. Demographics of Survey Respondents Compared to Demographics of the City of Willits Category Demographics of Survey Respondents U.S. Census Demographics of City of Willits 2019 Age 50 or older 60.87% 60 or older 23.10%
Housing Type Single family home 87.32% Single family home 74% Housing Status Homeowner 81.16% Homeowner 37.8%
Race White 66.20% White 83.92%
Source: Willits Urban Tree Public Survey 2021
Source: World Population Review 2021
Results
A report of complete survey results is provided in Appendix E to this Technical Assessment. Survey respondents place a high importance on the City’s trees, with 89% identifying that trees are either more important than or equally as important as other City-maintained infrastructure. Over 34% of respondents view the City’s trees as being in good or excellent condition, and 88.61% believe the trees contribute to their quality of life. Approximately 66% of the survey participants believe that the trees are in fair or poor health. In terms of issues that dissuade residents from growing trees on private property, 23% of respondents identified no issues, while the most common answers were damage to pipes and sewers (33%) and mess/leaf litter (24%). The top two benefits of trees that respondents identified included improving the environment (70%) and improved property value (67%).

The survey also asked questions about the threats facing trees in Willits. Responses were fairly consistent in agreement that drought, pests and diseases, increasing wildfires, and conflicts with other infrastructure all pose threats to the trees in their neighborhood. Regarding tree protection on private property, 78% of respondents agreed to some level (strongly agree, agree, or somewhat agree) that protection should be enforced in the same way that public trees are protected. Approximately 82% believe that educating the community would have the most impact towards achieving healthy trees.

CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 59
Community Engagement | SECTION 4
Approximately 64% of respondents agree to participate in supporting the City’s trees canopy goals, but several respondents expressed concern with increasing water prices and maintaining the health of the trees. Approximately 49% of respondents stated that homeowners should be encouraged to increase the number of healthy trees on their property. Additional written responses to this question suggested that the City may have resistance from residents when implementing new ordinances that affect property owners.

Comments from the survey show that increasing the number of trees in the City could increase the aesthetic value of the City and its community. Several respondents indicate they are upset over the amount of trees being cut down and/or cut back by the City and PG&E. The community is aware that the trees should be placed in an environment that will promote the health of the tree, and several are in favor of increasing public education to help expose more residents to this issue.

There is a strong desire to encourage planting of native trees. Several respondents also mentioned that the City does not maintain its current number of trees. Additional comments highlighted that vegetation in areas where volunteers participated in shrub and tree plantings appears to have declined over time. Multiple respondents mentioned they would prefer a tree to be replaced with a similar tree if it is cut down.

The current wildfire danger and the 2020 threat of evacuation create an additional concern related to necessary tree maintenance and pruning. Similarly, feedback during stakeholder interviews (discussed in Section 4.3: Stakeholder Interviews) suggests the City should direct community education initiatives toward wildfire safety and defensible space to help residents understand the ways to balance the seemingly mutually exclusive goals of mitigating fire risk and maintaining canopy cover.

4.2 Community Meetings
In partnership with Dudek, the City held a virtual community meeting on February 11, 2021 via the online Zoom platform, which was attended by 10 community members, Councilmembers Greta Kane and Saprina Rodriguez , two City staff, and three members of the consultant team. The meeting included an introduction to the City’s UFMP project and vision, as well as the initial key findings about the existing conditions of the urban forest. Following the introduction, community members were engaged in a discussion of community values surrounding the urban forest. Attendees contributed to the conversation by speaking publicly to the group during the meeting or submitting comments using Zoom’s chat feature. Extensive notes were taken during the meeting, and comments were analyzed to determine major community themes, values, and priorities that were expressed for the City’s urban forest, as presented in Table 30.
60 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN
SECTION 4 | Community Engagement
Table 30. Community Meeting Emerging Themes
Theme/Value/Priority Community Comments
Tree Maintenance
• Neighborhoods on the west side of town have many mature trees below utility lines, which have been trimmed into a “v”, resulting in an aesthetically displeasing appearance • Typically trees in the parkway strip are not properly maintained • Concerns regarding how the City will fund additional maintenance • Lack of/poor maintenance of City trees impacts public perception of trees Tree-infrastructure conflicts • Many trees in the parkway strip have resulted road/sidewalk damage, particularly along School Street near the intersection with West Commercial.

Areas lacking trees
• Highway 20
• Downtown areas
• Southern portion of the City, e.g., Harrah’s Manor
• Trail behind Haehl Creek Court subdivision
Community education/outreach • Educational outreach is needed for property owners explaining proper tree pruning/maintenance practices and “right tree, right place” concepts to reduce or avoid damage Increasing Canopy Cover
• Due to minimal available public land, increasing canopy cover seems to fall primarily on private property owners
• The City should consider a planting requirement in new development as well as follow up maintenance requirements to ensure survival
Species diversity • Desire for native trees
• Oak trees in Rec Grove Park are highly valued
Vision • Natural setting (native trees) in riparian areas expanded into the City CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 61
Community Engagement | SECTION 4

4.3 Stakeholder Interviews
Dudek conducted two supplemental stakeholder interviews to gain a better understanding of needs and priorities of residents and business owners in Willits. Both interviewees were chosen by the City based on their role as business owners within the City, involvement in community-member-led City tree planting projects, and long-time residency in the community.

Both stakeholders identified that they place a high value on Willits trees, and were concerned that many of Willits’s large trees had been removed in recent years. They noted that the replacement trees were either a smaller stature tree, or so young that the benefits the new trees provide would not be seen again in their lifetime. Similarly, shade was addressed as a concern for both stakeholders, and that different parks such as Bud Snyder Park that had large trees removed and once housed the City’s farmers’ market no longer serve as a community meeting ground due to lack of shade. When the consultant team mentioned the reasons behind the tree removals (disease, senescence, tree risk hazard), the stakeholders were either not aware of these concerns, or expressed a long history of tree mismanagement that tarnished their trust of the City’s reasons for removal. These findings illustrate the critical importance and opportunity the City must pursue in engaging community members in the urban forest program.

Because the City lacks available planting space, Willits may need to rely on and/or incentivize private property owners to increase the trees in their own yards to meet its canopy cover goals. However, throughout the UFMP process, stakeholder interviews, and survey results, mixed opinions were shared by community members about City involvement with private property. Many political and social factors contribute to these opinions, but fire risk and hazard were frequently addressed during stakeholder interviews as a main concern. One of the stakeholders shared that they are cutting down trees to preserve defensible space surrounding their house, and does not expect to replant them. The City may face declining canopy cover in future years if it does not implement a firesafe community education program.
62 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

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CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 63
Astell-Burt, T., and X. Feng. 2019. Association of Urban Green Space With Mental Health and General Health Among Adults in Australia. JAMA 2019;2(7).

Ball, J., S. Mason, A. Kiesz, D. McCormick, and C. Brown. 2007. “Assessing the Hazard of Emerald Ash Borer and Other Exotic Stressors to Community Forests.” Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 33(5): 350–359.

Browning, D.M., and H.V. Wiant. 1997. “The economic impacts of deferring electric utility tree maintenance.” Journal of Arboriculture 23(3):106–112.

CAL FIRE (California Department of Fire and Forestry). 2007. Draft Fire Hazard Severity Zones in LRA. https://osfm.fire. ca.gov/media/5863/willits.pdf
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CUFR (Center for Urban Forestry Research). 2005. The Large Tree Argument: The Case for Large-Stature Trees vs. SmallStature Trees. https://www.fs.fed.us/psw/topics/urban_forestry/products/cufr_511_large_tree_argument.pdf.

Dudek. 2020. City of Willits Tree Inventory.

Dumbaugh, E. 2005. “Safe Streets, Livable Streets.” Journal of the American Planning Association 71(3): 283–300.

Dumbaugh, E. 2006. “Design of Safe Urban Roadsides: An Empirical Analysis.” Transportation Research Record 1961:62–74.

EPA (U.S. Environmental Protection Agency). 2019. “Using Trees and Vegetation to Reduce Heat Islands.” Last updated December 16, 2019. Accessed January 26, 2021. https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/using-trees-and-vegetation-reduce-heatislands.

EPA. 2020. “Heat Island Effect.” Last updated December 9, 2020. Accessed January 27, 2021. https://www.epa.gov/ heatislands.

Hauer, R. and W. Peterson. 2016a. Municipal Tree Care and Management in the United States: A 2014 Urban & Community Forestry Census of Tree Activities. Special Publication 16-1, College of Natural Resources, University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point. Accessed March 3, 2021. https://www.uwsp.edu/cnr/Documents/MTCUS%20-%20Forestry/Municipal%202014%20 Final%20Report.pdf.

REFERENCES
64 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

REFERENCES
Hauer, R. and W. Peterson. 2016b. Municipal Tree Care and Management in the United States: A 2014 Urban & Community Forestry Census of Tree Activities. Appendix. Special Publication 16-1, College of Natural Resources, University of Wisconsin – Stevens Point. Accessed March 3, 2021. https://www.uwsp.edu /cnr/Documents/MTCUS%20-%20Forestry/Municipal%202014%20Report%20Appendix.pdf.

Hilbert, Deborah R., Lara A. Roma, Andrew K. Koeser, Jess Vogt, and Natalie S. van Doorn. 2019. Urban Tree Mortality: A Literature Review. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 2019. 45(5):167–200. Accessed July 8, 2021. https://www.fs.fed.us/nrs/ pubs/jrnl/2019/nrs_2019_hilbert_001.pdf
Kuo, F.E ., W.C. Sullivan, R.L. Coley, L. Brunson. 1998. “Fertile Ground for Community: Inner-City Neighborhood Common Spaces.” American Journal of Community Psychology 26(6): 823-851. http://illinois-online.org/krassa/ps450/Readings/ Kuo%20Fertile%20Ground%20Innercity%20Common%20Space.pdf.

Leahy. 2017. “Why We No Longer Recommend 40% Canopy Cover,” Loose Leaf (Blog), American Forests, https://www. americanforests.org/blog/no-longer-recommend-40-percent-urban-tree-canopy-goal/. Accessed May 14, 2021.

Loughner, C., D.J. Allen, D.L. Zhang, K.E. Pickering, R.R. Dickerson, and L. Landry. 2012. “Roles of Urban Tree Canopy and Buildings in Heat Island Effects: Parameterization and Preliminary Results.” Journal of Applied Meteorology and Climatology 51(10): 1775–1793. https://doi.org/10.1175/JAMC-D-11-0228.1.

Maizlish, N., N.J. Linesch, and J. Woodcock. 2017. “Health and greenhouse gas mitigation benefits of ambitious expansion of cycling, walking, and transit in California.” Journal of Transport & Health 6:490-500.

McBride, J.R., and I. Lacan. 2018. “The Impact of Climate-Change Induced Temperature Increases on the Suitability of Street Tree Species in California (USA) Cities.” Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 34: 348–356.

Miller, R.H., and R.W. Miller. 1991. “Planting Survival of Selected Tree Taxa.” Journal of Arboriculture 17(7): 185–191.

McPherson, E.G., N. van Doorn, and J. de Goede. 2016. “Structure, Function and Value of Street Trees in California, USA.” Urban Forestry & Urban Greening 17: 104–115.

Morgenroth, J., D.J. Nowak, and A.K. Koeser. 2020. “DBH Distributions in America’s Urban Forests—An Overview of Structural Diversity.” Forests 11(2): 135. doi:10.3390/f11020135.

OEHHA (Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment). 2018. CalEnviroScreen 3.0 [online software]. June 25, 2018. https://oehha.ca.gov/calenviroscreen/report/calenviroscreen-30.

Richards, N.A. 1983. “Diversity and Stability in a Street Tree Population.” Urban Ecology 7(2): 159–171.

CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 65

REFERENCES
Richards, N.A. 1993. “Reasonable Guidelines for Street Tree Diversity.” Journal of Arboriculture 19(6): 344–350.

Ryder, C.M., and G.M. Moore. 2013. “The arboricultural and economic benefits of formative pruning street trees.” Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 39(1):17–24
Sutherland, A. 2014. “Invasive Pests of Concern for California’s Urban Agriculture Systems,” Pests in the Landscape (Blog), University of California Agriculture and Natural Resources, https://ucanr.edu/blogs/blogcore/postdetail. cfm?postnum=15606. Accessed May 20, 2021.

Swain, D.L., B. Langenbrunner, J.D. Neelin, and A. Hall. 2018. “Increasing Precipitation Volatility in Twenty-First-Century California.” Nature Climate Change 8: 427–433. https://www.nature.com/articles/s41558-018-0140-y Swiecki, T. J., Bernhardt, E. A. 2001. “Guidelines for Developing and Evaluating Tree Ordinances.” Phytosphere Research, Vacaville, CA. http://phytosphere.com/treeord/index.htm. Accessed: July 15, 2021.

Tilman. D., and J.A. Downing. 1994. “Biodiversity and Stability in Grassland.” Nature 367:363–365.

Topp, H.H. 1990. “Traffic Safety, Usability and Streetscape Effects of New Design Principles for Major Urban Roads”.

Transportation 16:297–310.

USFS (U.S. Forest Service). n.d. “Urban Tree Canopy in California” [interactive map viewer]. https://www.fs.usda.gov/ detailfull/r5/communityforests/?cid=fseprd647442&width=full.

USFS. 2006. Trees – The Air Pollution Solution. Accessed July 15, 2021. https://www.fs.fed.us/psw/topics/urban_forestry/ products/cufr_658_Air_pollution_solution.pdf
USFS. 2020. i-Tree Eco [online software]. https://www.itreetools.org/tools/i-tree-eco.

Vibrant Cities Lab. n.d. Community Assessment & Goal-Setting Tool [online tool]. Accessed March 3, 2021. https://www. vibrantcitieslab.com/assessment-tool/.

Voght, J., R. Hauer, and B.C. Fischer. 2015. The Costs of Maintaining and Not Maintaining the Urban Forest: A Review of the Urban Forestry and Arboriculture Literature. Arboriculture & Urban Forestry 41(6): 293–323.

Willits Chamber of Commerce. 2021. Willits History. Accessed July 2021. https://visitwillits.com/ willitshistory/#:~:text=In%201888%20the%20flourishing%20tanbark%20industry%20led%20to,153%20in%201880%20 to%20over%203%2C000%20in%201970.

White, M.P., I. Alcock, B.W. Wheeler, M.H. Depledge. 2014. “Would You Be Happier Living in a Greener Urban Area? A Fixed- 66 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

REFERENCES
Effects Analysis of Panel Data.” Psychological Science 24(6): 920–928. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/23613211/. Wolf, K.L. 2010. “Safe Streets.” College of the Environment, University of Washington. Accessed January 28, 2021. https://depts. washington.edu/hhwb/Thm_SafeStreets.html.

Wolf, K.L. 2014. City Trees and Consumer Response in Retail Business Districts (pp. 152-172). In: F. Musso, & E. Druica (eds.) Handbook of Research on Retailer-Consumer Relationship Development. Hershey, PA: IGI Global. http://www. naturewithin.info/New/2014.City-Trees-and-Consumer-Response.Bk%20Chapt.Wolf.pdf Wolf, K.L., S. Kruger, and K. Flora. 2015. “Reduced Risk: A Literature Review,” In: Green Cities: Good Health. College of the Environment, University of Washington. Accessed January 26, 2021. https://depts.washington.edu/hhwb/Print_Risk.html World Population Review. 2021. Willits, California Population 2021. https://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/willits-ca-population

68 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A
Recommended
Tree Species
Palette
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 69
Recommended Tree Species Palette | APPENDIX A

APPENDIX A

RECOMMENDED TREE SPECIES PALETTE
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Recommended Tree Species Palette
Genus Species Common Name
Evergreen,
Deciduous,
Conifer
Size
Classification
Height
(Feet)
Crown
Spread
(Feet)
Spacing
between
trees
(Feet)
Minimum
Parkway
Width
(Feet)
Utility
Friendly
Water Use Classification
of Landscape Species
(WUCOLS) rating
Regionally
Native
Fire Hazard
Rating Residential Commercial Park
Aesculus x carnea Red horsechestnut D Medium 50 30-50 30-35 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low — — X Aesculus californica California buckeye D Medium 25 20-30 15-20 4 to 6 Yes Very Low Yes Low X X X Arbutus unedo Strawberry
madrone
E Medium 20-35 20-35 20-25 3 to 4 Yes Low — Low X X —
Arbutus Marina’ Strawberry tree E Medium 40-50 40 30-35 6 to 8 No Low — Low X — X Brachychiton populneus Kurrajong E Medium 30-50 30 30-35 4 to 6 No Low — Low X — X Calocedrus decurrens Incense cedar E Large 90 10-15 15-20 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium Yes Low — — X Carpinus betulus European
hornbeam
D Medium 40 20-30 15-20 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low X X X Celtis austrailis European
hackberry
D Large 70 40-50 30-35 6 to 8 No Low — Low — — X
Cercis occidentalis Western redbud D Small 20 10-20 20-25 3 to 4 Yes Very Low Yes Low X X — Chionanthus retusus Chinese fringe tree D Small 20 6-12 5-10 3 to 4 Yes Moderate/Medium — Low X X — Chitalpa tashkentensis Chitalpa D Medium 35 30 15-20 4 to 6 No Low — Low X X — Eriobotrya japonicum Japnanese loquat E Small 30 15-30 10-15 3 to 4 Yes Low — Low X X — Geijera parviflora Australian willow E Medium 35 20 30-35 6 to 8 No Low — Low — X X Ginkgo biloba Maidenhair tree D Medium 65 25 15-20 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low X X X Heteromeles arbutifolia Toyon E Small 25 8-15 5-10 3 to 4 Yes Low Yes Low X X — Koelreuteria paniculata Goldenrain D Medium 20-40 20-40 30-35 4 to 6 No Moderate/Medium — Low X X X Koelreuteria bipinnata Chinese flame D Medium 20-40 20-40 30-35 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low X X — Lagerstroemia indica Crape myrtle D Small 25 25 20-25 3 to 4 Yes Low — Low X X — Laurus nobilis Sweetbay E Medium 15-40 15-30 20-25 3 to 4 No Low — Low — X X Lophostemon conferta Brisbane box E Medium 20-40 20-40 30-35 4 to 6 No Moderate/Medium — Low — — X Maytenus boaria Mayten tree E Medium 50 20-30 15-20 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low X — X Olea europae ‘swan
hill’
Fruitless olive E Medium 20-40 -20 30-35 4 to 6 Yes Very Low — Low X X X Pistacia chinensis Chinese pistache D Medium 40+ 40+ 30-35 6 to 8 No Moderate/Medium — Low X X — Quercus douglasii Blue oak D Large 65 40-50 30-35 6 to 8 No Very Low Yes Low — — X Quercus kelloggii Black oak D Large 70 30-35 30-35 8+ No Low — Low — — X Quercus lobata Valley oak D Large 70 50 30-35 8+ No Low Yes Low — — X Quercus suber Cork Oak E Medium 20-40 20-40 30-35 4 to 6 Yes Low Yes Low X X X Quercus wislizeni Interior live oak E Large 70 40-80 30-35 6 to 8 No Very Low Yes Low — — X Quillaja saponaria Soapbark tree E Medium 45 15-25 10-15 6 to 8 No Low — Low X — X Robinia purple robe’ Purple robe locust D Medium 40 20-30 15-20 4 to 6 Yes Low — Low X — X Styphnolobium japonica Japnanese pagoda
tree
D Large 70 40-70 30-35 6 to 8 No Low — Low — — X
Ulmus davidiana var
japonica
Japanese elm D Medium 55 25-35 15-20 6 to 8 No Low — Low X — X Vitex agnus-castus Chaste tree D Small 15 15-20 10-15 3 to 4 Yes Low — Low X X — Xylosma congestum Shiny xylosma E. Small 10 8-15 5-10 3 to 4 Yes Low — Low X X — Zelkova serrata Sawleaf zelkova D Medium 50-65 50-65 30-35 6 to 8 No Low — Low X X X

APPENDIX A

RECOMMENDED TREE SPECIES PALETTE
12694
A-2 October 2021

INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK
70 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B

APPENDIX B
Sidewalk
Solutions
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 71
Sidewalk Solutions | APPENDIX B

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
1 Tree and Sidewalk Conflict Solutions
Trees and sidewalks are both key pieces of urban infrastructure that contribute to the pedestrian environment. Both contribute to the character and sense of place in a community as well as provide health and economic benefits while offering a means for comfortable active transportation.

However, these two elements of the public streetscape are often in conflict with one another. Sidewalks and other hardscapes can preclude healthy tree growth and canopy development by limiting available soil volume, while tree roots often cause damage to sidewalks resulting in uplift and fall and trip hazards which can be costly to repair. These conflicts and the associated costs often overshadow the benefits provided by trees in the urban landscape, resulting in the removal of trees or the decision to avoid planting trees altogether. In reality, tree and infrastructure conflicts are due to inadequate site design and exacerbated by planting the wrong tree species for the allotted space. The cost of sidewalk repairs or removing and replacing trees is a significant investment that can be avoided with proper site design and species selection. There are a number of strategies for minimizing, avoiding or eliminating tree and sidewalk conflicts that can be employed by local or regional governments. Table 1 outlines tree and sidewalk conflict resolution tactics and design solutions that can be employed when replacing damaged sidewalks or installing new sidewalks. Employing these strategies is dependent upon policies, standards and design requirements, clear processes for implementation, and funding.

Local jurisdictions are required to abide by federal and state policies governing sidewalk design, such as the US Access Board Public Right-of-Way Accessibility Guidelines (PROWAG), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the California Building Code (CBC). Additionally, local jurisdictions can adopt local policies, standards, and plans that guide the management of trees and sidewalks. Examples include tree protection ordinances, street tree and sidewalk design requirements, tree planting standards and specifications, street tree lists, and long-range plans, such as urban forest management plans, bicycle and pedestrian plans/active transportation plans, the General Plan, and specific plans.

In order to successfully implement tree and sidewalk policies and standards, cities must have processes in place for implementation and maintenance, including review of development plans and strict code enforcement. If not managed within the same department, city departments managing street trees and sidewalks must maintain clear lines of communication and collaborate regularly. Approaching management of street trees and sidewalks within the same department can prove successful, as collaboration is easily facilitated. Forestry staff and engineers can jointly inspect conflicts or conduct plan review and work together to identify solutions. A formalized process will help guide these actions, such as 1 are based on the Toolkit included in Trees and Sidewalks Operations.

Cities must have reliable funding for management and oversight of its tree and sidewalk programs in order to successfully resolve or avoid conflicts. This includes funding for staff, tree planting, plan review, inspection and code enforcement, and maintenance and repairs. Examples of possible revenue streams to fund forestry and sidewalk programs include allocations from the general fund, partnering with nonprofit organizations, or allocations from taxes or fees, such as a gas tax, utility tax or development impact fees. Additional funding may also come from less traditional approaches, such as establishing a City nursery or composting program and offering these products for sale.

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
2 Table 1. Tree and Sidewalk Conflict Solutions
Solution Type Pros Cons
Estimated
Cost
($ $$$$)
Useful Life
(YearsDecadesCenturies) Example Image
Materials
The following sidewalk solutions present various materials for replacement/repair of a damaged sidewalk that may be used instead of concrete.

Asphalt Short-term to mediumterm solution
Low initial cost
More flexible than
concrete
May be used as a
repair/replacement or for
new sidewalks
Easily repaired
Not widely used,
creating conflicts with
appearance and visual
character
Useful life can vary
greatly
Useful life shorter than
that concrete
$$
($22 per
linear foot)
Decades
Image Source: Seattle Department of
Transportation

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
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Pavers Many types, materials,
and colors available
More flexible than
concrete, providing room
for continued tree root
growth
May be used as
temporary repair or
replacement, or when
installing new sidewalk at
the same time as trees
Requires cutting to fit
around other
infrastructure (e.g.,
utilities, etc.)
Not all available types
and materials are
suitable for all
locations, as required
depth of excavation
may vary
Durability varies by type
$$ $$$
($10 to $50
per square
foot)
Decades
Image Source: n.d.

Pervious
Concrete
Allows air and water to
reach soil
May encourage deeper
root growth and deter
shallow root growth,
reducing root damage to
sidewalks
Provides better growing
conditions
Requires deeper
excavation for
installation of subbase
layers
Requires more
maintenance than
standard concrete
$$$ $$$$
($35 per
linear foot)
Decades
Image Source: Bay Area Pervious Concrete

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
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Porous Asphalt Allows water to pass
through to soil
May be used for
replacement of large
segments of sidewalk or
installation of new
sidewalks where
infiltration is desirable
(e.g., adjacent to
bioretention)
Cannot be produced in
small quantities and
should only be used
when long sidewalk
segments are being
installed (e.g., multiple
blocks)
$ $$$
($30 per
linear foot)
Decades

Image Source: Porous Pave
Decomposed
Granite
May be used as a
pathway or walkway
surface, or as a finished
surface on top of planting
soil in tree pits rather
than mulch
Provides flexible but
walkable surface near
tree roots
Best used in parks on
walking and cycling
paths, or similar settings
May be used as a
temporary repair near
root zones or for
installation of new
pathways or walkways
Not recommended for
busy pedestrian routes
(best in residential
areas)
Requires more
maintenance than
asphalt or concrete, as
uneven settling can
occur
Americans with
Disabilities Act
compliance may require
binders and regular
maintenance
$ $$
($12 per
linear foot)
Years
Image Source: Bike Orlando
Alternative Sidewalk Design Construction Methods
The following sidewalk solutions present alternative sidewalk design and construction methods to better accommodate trees and resist damage to sidewalks.

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
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Reinforced or
Thicker Slab
Reinforcing concrete with
steel rebar or wire mesh
and/or using a thicker
slab helps resist uplift of
tree roots
May be used to correct
uplift after other
corrective actions have
been taken
May not be compatible
with future utility
installation
Should not be used
where additional root
growth is anticipated
(i.e., sufficient soil
volume should be
provided)
$$ $$$
($60 per
linear foot
for
reinforced
slab and
$40 per
linear foot
for 4-inch
thickness)
Decades
Image Source: E. F. Gilman
Expansion Joints Allow for some movement
of concrete
Used to control the
location of cracking
May be used as repair or
replacement or for new
sidewalks near existing
trees (where roots may
be pruned prior to
installation and
substantial root growth is
not anticipated)
Should not be used
where significant
additional root growth is
anticipated (i.e.,
sufficient soil volume
should be provided)
Short term solution
$
(varies)
Decades
Image Source: S. Kubiak and V. Kubiak

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
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Monolithic
Sidewalk
The continuous
installation of concrete
with no grade change
between sidewalk and
street has greater weight
(mass) to resist tree root
uplift
Reduces potential for
future weakness in
pavement infrastructure
May be used in new
development and in
redevelopment
Consideration must be
given to impacts related
to stormwater runoff
and drainage patterns
Not ideal for areas
where new root growth
is expected (new
plantings or continued
growth)
$$$
($60 per
linear foot)
Century
Image Source: Seattle Department of
Transportation
Tree
Pits/Expanded
Tree Pits
Alternative to planting
strips where maintaining
sidewalk width is
important (e.g., business
districts)
May be used in new
development where tree
pit sizing and tree
selection are coordinated
or in existing
development where
sufficient space is
Must establish
minimum sizing
requirements to ensure
adequate soil volume
Continuous planter
strips are preferred
where feasible
$
($15 per
square yard
for widening
existing tree
pits.

No
additional
cost if
implemente
d in new
Decades

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
7 July 2021
available to expand
existing tree pits
developmen
t design)
Image Source: Morristown Shade Commission
Bridging Provides grade
separation between tree
root zone and sidewalk
Does not require
compacted subgrade
allowing tree roots to
grow in soil
Variety of materials can
be used such as concrete
or steel panels
May be used as repair or
replacement of damaged
sidewalk or to preserve a
high value tree
Site specific grading
requirements may
prevent use of this
technique
A nonslip surface
treatment is required
for metal/steel
materials
Additional Americans
with Disabilities Act
requirements related to
grade differentials
greater than 18 inches
$$$$
($225 per
linear foot)
Decades
Image Source: E. Gilman

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
8 July 2021
Curb Extensions
(Bulb-Outs)
Increases pedestrian
safety through traffic
calming and shortening
the crossing distance for
pedestrians
Provides additional root
growth area reducing
likelihood of root damage
to sidewalks
Provides flexibility for tree
species selection
May be used in new
development or as
expansion of sidewalks
and planting space in
redevelopment
Must consider impacts
to drainage and existing
utilities
Must consider site
specific transportation
conditions or impacts,
including driver sight
lines as well as bicycle
and pedestrian facilities
$$$ $$$$
($50 per
linear foot
excluding
drainage
and ramps)
Century
Image Source: Dylan Passmore
Curb
Realignment
Shifts curb location to
widen the planting strip
May be used for new
development or
redevelopment to provide
additional space for new
or existing trees
Requires sufficient
street widths
Must consider impacts
to other infrastructure
and utilities
Must consider site
specific transportation
conditions or impacts
$$$ $$$$
($50 per
linear foot
excluding
drainage
modification
and ramps
Minimal
additional
cost if part
of new
developmen
t design)
Century
Image Source: Seattle Department of
Transportation

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
9 July 2021
Curving or Offset
Sidewalk
Allows for walkways that
meander around planting
areas, allowing trees
more grow space
Increases pedestrian
safety by separating
sidewalks from vehicular
traffic
May be used in new
development or
redevelopment to
preserve existing trees or
to provide sufficient grow
space for new plantings
Requires adequate
space in the right of
way
May require easement
for use of private
property
$$ $$$
($38 per
linear foot)
Image Source: Bartlett Tree Care
Easement May allow for use of
private property where
additional space is
needed
Provides larger planting
area for new or existing
trees
Requires coordination
with property owner
$ $$$
(Varies
based on
market
value or
dedication
from
property
owner)
Century
Image Source: Seattle Department of
Transportation
Suspended
Pavement
Systems
Provides space and soil
volume for new tree
plantings in areas that
could not have supported
tree root growth.

Involves removing and
repaving sidewalks if
they already exist in the
areas
Site specific grading
requirements need to
$$$ $$$$
(15-
$25/cubic
foot)
Decades

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
10 July 2021
Prevents root damage to
pavement if implemented
at the correct time
be taken into
consideration
Image Source: DeepRoot
Lowered Tree
Sites
Can help prevent soil
compaction due to
pedestrian traffic
Can bring trees to streets
with limited planting
space and few
underground
infrastructure conflicts
Can conflict with
underground
infrastructure; can only
be implemented in
areas that have limited
potential for conflict
Lowered sites tend to
accumulate trash and
other debris, presenting
a maintenance issue
Design must include a
drainage plan because
soil can be easily
oversaturated
$$$ $$$$ Decades
Image Source: Storm Tree
Root
The following sidewalk solutions present design solutions that specifically address tree roots.

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
11 July 2021
Root Barriers Deters root growth to
limit damage to
pavement
May be added after tree
planting to retrofit or
address root issues
Will not address all
issues from tree roots,
but will help deter
$
($8 per
linear foot)
Decades
Image Source: Advanced Exacta Sales Inc.

Foam Underlay Provides a foam layer of
support between
pavement and tree roots
to help prevent damage
Can offer an alternative
to root pruning when a
sidewalk needs to be
replaced but root pruning
would severely damage
the tree
Best used to repair
damage caused by
mature tree roots
Short term solution
Not a good option for
tree species that have
rapid root growth
$ $$
($150 to
$250 per
location)
Years
Image Source: Costello and Jones
Modified Gravel
Layer
Suppressed root growth
More longevity than foam
underlay and serves the
same purpose
Thickness of gravel
around roots can be
adjusted to
accommodate size
Could wound tree roots
making the trees more
susceptible to soilborne
pathogens
4 inches of gravel is
needed, if excavation
would damage critical
existing roots
Modified Gravel Layer
may not be an option
$
($0.70 per
square foot
at depth of 4
inches)
Decades
Image Source: E. Gilman

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
13047
12 July 2021
Root Paths Can proactively direct
paths for roots to grow,
when designed at the
beginning of planting
Help direct roots around
utilities when planting
space is limited
Drainage away from or
out of root path will
need to be considered
$ $$
($600 to
$800 per
tree)
Decades
Image Source: Seattle Department of
Transportation
Steel Plates Can be used as an
alternative to root
pruning
Can be used to help
mitigate issues with roots
that have already
developed (reactionary)
Can conflict with
underground utilities
Requires sidewalk to be
removed and replaced
for installation
$$ $$$
($500 to
$1,000
per site)
Decades
Image Source: Gordan Mann

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
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13 July 2021
Sources:

American Planning Association. 2009. Planning the Urban Forest: Ecology, Economy, and Community Development. Planning Advisory Service Report Number 555.

Bassuk et al. 2015; Bike Orlando 2020; Casey Trees 2008; Costello and Jones 2003; Elmendorf 2008; City of New York Parks & Recreation 2014; City of Seattle 2011; City of Seattle Department of Transportation 2014, 2015; City of Seattle Public Utilities 2015; Mann n.d.; Smiley 2008 Bassuk, N., Denig, B., Haffner, T. Grabosky, J., and Trowbridge, P. 2015. CU-Structural Soil ®: A Comprehensive Guide. Urban Horticulture Institute, Cornell University. http://www.hort.cornell.edu/uhi/outreach/pdfs/CU-Structural%20Soil%20-%20A%20Comprehensive%20Guide.pdf.

Bike Orlando. 2020. Ward Park, Winter Park, FL Biking, Hiking. E-Z Map, 35+ Photos. Accessed May 2021. https://www.bikeorlando.net/ward-park-winter-park.htm.

Casey Trees. 2008. Tree Space Design: Growing the Tree Out of The Box. Accessed May 2021. http://caseytrees.org/resources/publications/treespacedesign/. n.d. Accessed May 2021. https://carrollsbuildingmaterials.com/landscape-products/pavers-profiles-finishes/classichexagon-pavers/.

Costello, L. R. and K. S. Jones. 2003. Reducing Infrastructure Damage By Tree Roots: A Compendium of Strategies. Western Chapter of the International Society of Arboriculture.

Elmendorf, W. 2008. Planting and Aftercare of Community Trees. Penn State University Extension.

City of New York Parks & Recreation. February 2014. Tree Planting Standards. Accessed May 2021. http://www.nycgovparks.org/pagefiles/53/Tree-Planting-Standards.pdf.

City of Seattle. 2011. Seattle Right-of-Way Improvements Manual. https://www.seattle.gov/rowmanual/manual/.

City of Seattle Department of Transportation. 2014. Street Tree Manual. Accessed May 2021. http://www.seattle.gov/documents/departments/sdot/about/documentlibrary /streettreemanualweb.pdf.

City of Seattle Department of Transportation. 2015. Tree Sidewalks Operations Plan. City of Seattle Public Utilities. 2015. Standard Specifications of Municipal Construction. Plans 100a, 421, 424, 425, 430.

Mann, Gordon. N.d. Sidewalk and Root Conflicts: Mitigating the Conflict - An Overview. Accessed May 2021, on Municipal Research and Services Center (MRSC) website at:
http://mrsc.org/getmedia/4DD1A628-BD5A-49E3-B1EE-3D09525F63BE/m58mannmade.asp.

Martin, Justin. 2017. Trees and Sidewalks: A Strategic Approach to Conflicts. Green Infrastructure for Your Community. https://www.deeproot.com/blog/blog-entries/trees-andsidewalks-a-strategic-approach-to-conflicts Methods -183.

SIDEWALK SOLUTIONS
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72 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX C

APPENDIX C

APPENDIX C

APPENDIX C
Establishment
Care Guidelines
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 73
Establishment Care Guidelines | APPENDIX C
Care
G
74 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX D

APPENDIX D

APPENDIX D

APPENDIX D
Highly
Flammable Tree
Species List
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 75
Highly Flammable Tree Species List | APPENDIX D

UNDESIRABLE PLANT LIST
The following species are highly flammable and should be avoided when planting within the first 50 feet adjacent to a structure. The plants listed below are more susceptible to burning, due to rough or peeling bark, production of large amounts of litter, vegetation that contains oils, resin, wax, or pitch, large amounts of dead material in the plant, or plantings with a high dead to live fuel ratio. Many of these species, if existing on the property and adequately maintained (pruning, thinning, irrigation, litter removal, and weeding), may remain as long as the potential for spreading a fire has been reduced or eliminated.

BOTANICAL NAME COMMON NAME
Abies species
Acacia species
Adenostoma sparsifolium**
Adenostoma fasciculatum**
Agonis juniperina
Araucaria species
Artemesia californica**
Bambusa species
Cedrus species
Chamaecyparis species
Coprosma pumila
Cryptomeria japonica
Cupressocyparis leylandii
Cupressus forbesii**
Cupressus glabra
Cupressus sempervirens
Dodonea viscosa
Eriogonum fasciculatum**
Eucalyptus species
Heterotheca grandiflora**
Juniperus species
Larix species
Lonicera japonica
Miscanthus species
Muehlenbergia species**
Palmae species
Picea species
Pickeringia Montana**
Pinus species
Podocarpus species
Pseudotsuga menziesii
Rosmarinus species
Salvia mellifera**
Taxodium species
Taxus species
Thuja species
Tsuga species
Urtica urens**
Fir Trees
Acacia (trees, shrubs, groundcovers)
Red Shanks
Chamise
Juniper Myrtle
Monkey Puzzle, Norfolk Island Pine
California Sagebrush
Bamboo
Cedar
False Cypress
Prostrate Coprosma
Japanese Cryptomeria
Leylandii Cypress
Tecate Cypress
Arizona Cypress
Italian Cypress
Hopseed Bush
Common Buckwheat
Eucalyptus
Telegraph Plant
Junipers
Larch
Japanese Honeysuckle
Eulalia Grass
Deer Grass
Palms
Spruce Trees
Chaparral Pea
Pines
Fern Pine
Douglas Fir
Rosemary
Black Sage
Cypress
Yew
Arborvitae
Hemlock
Burning Nettle
** San Diego County native species
References: Gordon, H. White, T.C. 1994. Ecological Guide to Southern California Chaparral Plant Series. Cleveland National Forest.

Willis, E. 1997. San Diego County Fire
Interface Development Standards
City of Oceanside, California. 1995. Vegetation Management. Landscape Development Manual. Community Services Department, Engineering Division.

City of Vista, California 1997. Undesirable Plants. Section 18.56.999.

Landscaping Design, Development and Maintenance Standards. www.bewaterwise.com. 2004. Fire-resistant California Friendly Plants. www.ucfpl.ucop.edu. 2004. University of California, Berkeley, Forest Products Laboratory, College of Natural Resources. Defensible Space Landscaping in the Urban/Wildland Interface. A Compilation of Fire Performance Ratings of Residential Landscape Plants.

County of Los Angeles Fire Department. 1998. Fuel Modification Plan Guidelines. Appendix I, Undesirable Plant List, and Appendix II, Undesirable Plant List.
76 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX E

APPENDIX E

APPENDIX E

APPENDIX E
Public Survey
Results
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 77
Public Survey Results | APPENDIX E

78 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX F

APPENDIX F

APPENDIX F

APPENDIX F
Tree Protection
Guidelines
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 79
Tree Protection Guidelines | APPENDIX F
Appendix D Tree Protection Measures
The following sections are included as general guidelines for tree protection from construction impacts. The measures presented should be monitored by arborists and enforced by contractors and developers for maximum benefit to the trees.

Tree Protection Measures Prior to Construction
Fencing: All remaining trees that will not be relocated or removed should be preserved and protected in place. Trees within approximately 15 feet of proposed construction activity should be temporarily fenced with chain link or other material satisfactory to City planning staff throughout grading and construction activities. The fencing should be installed 3 feet outside of the dripline of each tree (or edge of canopy for cluster of trees), be 4 feet tall, and staked every 6 feet. The fenced area should be considered the tree protection zone (TPZ) unless proximate construction required temporary removal.

Pre-Construction Meeting: A pre-construction meeting should be held between all contractors (including grading, tree removal/pruning, builders, etc.) and the arborist. The arborist will instruct the contractors on tree protection practices and answer any questions. All equipment operators and spotters, assistants, or those directing operators from the ground, should provide written acknowledgement of their receiving tree protection training. This training should include information on the location and marking of protected trees, the necessity of preventing damage, and the discussion of work practices that will accomplish such.

Protection and Maintenance During Construction
Once construction activities have begun the following measures should be adhered to:

Equipment Operation and Storage: Avoid heavy equipment operation around the trees. Operating heavy machinery around the root zones of trees will increase soil compaction, which decreases soil aeration and subsequently reduces water penetration in the soil. All heavy equipment and vehicles should, at minimum, stay out of the fenced TPZ, unless where specifically approved in writing and under the supervision of a Certified Arborist or as provided by the approved landscape plan.

Storage and Disposal: Do not store or discard any supply or material, including paint, lumber, concrete overflow, etc. within the protection zone. Remove all foreign debris within the protection zone; it is important to leave the duff, mulch, chips, and leaves around the retained trees for water retention and nutrients. Avoid draining or leakage of equipment fluids near retained trees. Fluids such as gasoline, diesel, oils, hydraulics, brake and transmission fluids, paint, paint thinners, and glycol (anti-freeze) should be disposed of properly. Keep equipment parked at least 50 feet away from retained trees to avoid the possibility of leakage of equipment fluids into the soil. The effect of toxic equipment fluids on the retained trees could lead to decline and death.

Grade Changes: Grade changes, including adding fill, are not permitted within the TPZ without special written authorization and under the supervision of a Certified Arborist or as provided by the approved landscape plan. Lowering the grade within this area will necessitate cutting main support and feeder roots, jeopardizing the health and structural integrity of the tree(s). Adding soil, even temporarily, on top of the existing grade will compact the soil further, and decrease both water and air Tree Protection Measures Page 2
Moving Construction Materials: Care will be taken when moving equipment or supplies near the trees, especially overhead. Avoid damaging the tree(s) when transporting or moving construction materials and working around the tree (even outside of the fenced tree protection zone). Above ground tree parts that could be damaged (e.g., low limbs, trunks) should be flagged with red ribbon. If contact with the tree crown is unavoidable, prune the conflicting branch(es) using International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) standards.

Root Pruning: Except where specifically approved in writing or as provided in Attachment 3, all trenching should be outside of the fenced protection zone. Roots primarily extend in a horizontal direction forming a support base to the tree similar to the base of a wineglass. Where trenching is necessary in areas that contain tree roots, prune the roots using a Dosko root pruner or equivalent. All cuts should be clean and sharp, to minimize ripping, tearing, and fracturing of the root system. The trench should be made no deeper than necessary.

Irrigation: Trees that have been substantially root pruned (30% or more of their root zone) will require irrigation for the first 12 months. The first irrigation should be within 48 hours of root pruning. They should be deep watered every 2 to 4 weeks during the summer and once a month during the winter (adjust accordingly with rainfall). One irrigation cycle should thoroughly soak the root zones of the trees to a depth of 3 feet. The soil should dry out between watering; avoid keeping a consistently wet soil. Designate one person to be responsible for irrigating (deep watering) the trees.

Check soil moisture with a soil probe before irrigating. Irrigation is best accomplished by installing a temporary above ground micro-spray system that will distribute water slowly (to avoid runoff) and evenly throughout the fenced protection zone but never soaking the area located within 6 feet of the tree trunk, especially during warmer months.

Pruning: Do not prune any of the trees until all construction is completed. This will help protect the tree canopies from damage. All pruning should be completed under the direction of an ISA Certified Arborist and using ISA guidelines. Only dead wood should be removed from tree canopies.

Washing: During construction in summer and autumn months, wash foliage of trees adjacent to the construction sites with a strong water stream every two weeks in early hours before 10:00 a.m. to control mite and insect populations.

Inspection: An ISA Certified Arborist should inspect the impacted preserved trees on a monthly basis during construction. A report comparing tree health and condition to the original, pre-construction baseline should be submitted following each inspection. Photographs of representative trees are to be included in the report on a minimum annual basis.

Maintenance After Construction
Once construction is complete the fencing may be removed and the following measures performed to sustain and enhance the vigor of the preserved trees.

Mulch: Provide a 4-inch mulch layer under the canopy of trees. Mulch should include clean, organic mulch that will provide long-term soil conditioning, soil moisture retention, and soil temperature control.

Pruning: The trees will not require regular pruning. Pruning should only be done to maintain clearance and remove broken, dead or diseased branches. Pruning should only take place following a recommendation by an ISA Certified Arborist and performed under the supervision of an ISA Certified Arborist. No more than 20% of the canopy should be removed at any one time. All pruning should conform to ISA standards.

Tree Protection Measures Page 3
Watering: The natural trees that are not disturbed should not require regular irrigation, other than the 12 months following substantial root pruning. However, soil probing will be necessary to accurately monitor moisture levels. Especially in years with low winter rainfall, supplemental irrigation for the trees that sustained root pruning and any newly planted trees may be necessary. The trees should be irrigated only during the winter and spring months.

Watering Adjacent Plant Material: All plants near the trees should be compatible with water requirements of said trees. The surrounding plants should be watered infrequently with deep soaks and allowed to dry out in-between, rather than frequent light irrigation. The soil should not be allowed to become saturated or stay continually wet. Irrigation spray should not hit the trunk of any tree. A 60-inch dry-zone should be maintained around all tree trunks. An aboveground micro-spray irrigation system is recommended over typical underground pop-up sprays.

Washing: Periodic washing of the foliage is recommended during construction but no more than once every 2 weeks. Washing should include the upper and lower leaf surfaces and the tree bark. This should continue beyond the construction period at a less frequent rate with a high-powered hose only in the early morning hours. Washing will help control dirt/dust buildup that can lead to mite and insect infestations.

Spraying: If the trees are maintained in a healthy state, regular spraying for insect or disease control should not be necessary. If a problem does develop, an ISA Certified Arborist should be consulted; the trees may require application of insecticides to prevent the intrusion of bark-boring beetles and other invading pests. All chemical spraying should be performed by a licensed applicator under the direction of a licensed pest control advisor.

Inspection: All trees that were impacted during construction within the TPZ should be monitored by an ISA Certified Arborist for the first 5 years after construction completion. The Arborist should submit an annual report, photograph each tree and compare tree health and condition to the original, pre-construction baseline.
80 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX G

APPENDIX G

APPENDIX G

APPENDIX G
Tree Protection
Detail
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 81
Tree Protection Detail | APPENDIX G

TREE PROTECTION
Crown drip line or other limit of Tree Protection area. See tree preservation plan for fence alignment. 4'-0" Maintain existing grade with the tree
protection fence
unless otherwise
indicated on the
plans.
2" x 6' steel posts
or approved equal.

Tree Protection
fence: High density
polyethylene fencing
with 3.5" x 1.5"
openings; Colororange. Steel posts
installed at 8' o.c.
5" thick
layer of mulch.

Notes:
1- See specifications for additional tree
protection requirements.
2- If there is no existing irrigation, see
specifications for watering requirements.
3- No pruning shall be performed except
by approved arborist.
4- No equipment shall operate inside the
protective fencing including during fence
installation and removal.
5- See site preparation plan for any
modifications with the Tree Protection
area.

SECTION VIEW

KEEP OUT
TREE

PROTECTION
AREA

8.5" x 11"
sign
laminated in
plastic spaced
every 50'
along the
fence.

URBAN TREE FOUNDATION

OPEN SOURCE FREE TO USE
82 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX H

APPENDIX H

APPENDIX H

APPENDIX H
Funding
Opportunities
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 83
Funding Opportunities | APPENDIX H
Funding Opportunities
Grants
Environmental
Enhancement Mitigation
Program (California Natural
Resources Agency)
With approximately $13.4 million for the 2021 2023 funding cycle, this program encourages projects that produce multiple benefits that reduce greenhouse gas emissions; increase water use efficiency; reduce risks from climate change impacts; and demonstrate collaboration with local, state, and community entities. Eligible projects like tree planting and habitat restoration, must be directly or indirectly related to the environmental impact of the modification of an existing transportation facility or construction of a new transportation facility.

Urban Flood Protection Grant
Program (California Natural
Resources Agency)
The Urban Flood Protection Program was created by Proposition 68 for the purpose of multi-benefit projects in urbanized areas to address flooding. Projects must provide multi-benefit solutions to address flooding in urban areas, protect people, and protect property from flood damage. Examples of eligible projects include tree planting and establishment care and creating native landscapes with stormwater capture features like bioswales. There was one funding cycle for fiscal year 2020 2021 totaling $92.5 million.

Urban and Community
Forestry Program
(CAL FIRE)
Multiple grant programs supported by the Urban and Community Forestry Program will fund tree planting, tree inventories, urban wood and biomass utilization, blighted urban lands improvements, and leading edge work that advances the goals and objectives of supporting healthy urban forests and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. There was an estimated $10 million available to fund a variety of urban forestry projects in fiscal year 2019 2020.

Urban Greening Grant
Program (California Natural
Resources Agency)
Consistent with Assembly Bill 32 (2006), the Urban Greening Program will fund projects that reduce greenhouse gases by sequestering carbon, decreasing energy consumption, and reducing vehicles miles traveled, while also transforming the built environment into places that are more sustainable, enjoyable, and effective in creating healthy and vibrant communities. During the 2019 2020 fiscal year, there was approximately $28.5 million available for selected project applicants, which included public agencies, nonprofit organizations, and qualifying districts.

Active Transportation
Program (California
Department of
Transportation)
This program provides funding to encourage increased use of active modes of transportation, such as biking and walking. Trees and other vegetation are significant components of several eligible projects under the Active Transportation Program, including parks, trails, and safe routes to schools. $440 million will be distributed to project applicants over fiscal years 2019 2020, 2020 2021, 2021 2022, and 2022 2023. Applicants include public agencies, transit agencies, school districts, tribal governments, and nonprofit organizations.

Affordable Housing and
Sustainable Communities
(California Strategic Growth
Council)
The Strategic Growth Council is authorized to fund land use, housing, transportation, and land preservation projects to support infill and compact development that reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Urban Greening is a threshold requirement for all Affordable Housing and Sustainable Communities funded projects. Eligible urban greening projects include, but are not limited to, rainwater recycling; flow and filtration systems including rain gardens, stormwater planters, and filters; vegetated swales; bioretention basins; infiltration trenches; and integration with riparian buffers, shade trees, community gardens, and parks and open space. Funding for 2021 is estimated at $452 million and will be available to locality (e.g., local agencies), developer (entity responsible for project construction), or program operator (day-to-day operational project administrator) project applicants.

Storm Water Grant Program
(California State Water
Resources Control Board)
*Fees, Assessments, Taxes
Parcel Tax A parcel tax is a special tax levied for the provision of special benefits. Revenues from special taxes must be used for the specific purpose for which they are intended, so a parcel tax would create a dedicated funding stream for street trees. Similar to a special assessment, a parcel tax cannot be based on the value of property; however, the amount levied on each parcel need not be directly related to the benefits provided (ILG 2008). Cities have the flexibility to levy parcel taxes as they see fit, but they are typically based on lot square footage or levied as a flat tax, with the same amount per parcel (CTD 2012a). Parcel taxes are designed to encompass entire cities and therefore, are good candidates for a citywide street tree program, as opposed to the district-level approach that often occurs under special assessments.

Landscape and Lighting
Assessment Districts
LLADs are a form of special assessment that finance improvements to landscaping, lighting and open space, along with open space acquisition. The Landscape and Lighting Act of 1972 authorizes municipal agencies in California to initiate and administer LLADs. The creation of a LLAD, as with any special Report that demonstrates
the nexus between fees assessed and benefits provided, followed by majority (50 percent plus one) approval via a special ballot, pursuant to Proposition 218.

LLADs are widely used throughout California to fund a range of public realm improvements and services related to street trees, streetscape improvements, street and traffic lights, and recreational facilities, among others. As with parcel taxes, LLADs typically fund more than just street tree planting, establishment and maintenance. While a LLAD could be designed for street trees alone, the process may attract other agencies in need of additional revenue and interested in expanding the scope to services such as park and recreation maintenance. One caution would be to avoid setting the assessment so high as to generate voter backlash. Local municipalities have often convened focus groups to determine the appropriate assessment level.

General Obligation Bonds Local governments commonly use General Obligation (GO) bonds to fund the construction and improvement of projects involving real property (e.g., buildings, infrastructure and parks). GO bonds typically carry low interest rates, making them attractive for capital projects, which may include tree planting. However, funding is available for discrete projects, often over a limited time rather than an extended period. In addition, ongoing maintenance is ineligible for GO bond funding pursuant to federal tax law. California cities pay debt service from GO bonds through ad valorem property taxes, where assessments are based on property value. As a result, the issuance of GO bonds requires two-thirds voter approval (State Treasurer 2008).

Maintenance Assessment
Districts
The Landscape and Lighting Act of 1972 authorizes Maintenance Assessment Districts (MADs), which are closely related to LLADs. The key difference is that charter cities, can create MADs for the provision of services not specifically authorized under state law, thereby broadening their use (Griffin, pers. comm., 2012). MADs may be used to finance street tree care, but as with a LLAD, a MAD intended for street trees alone could also attract the attention of other agencies interested in funding the provision of additional non-related services.

Community Benefit
Districts
Community Benefit Districts (CBDs) are used to finance neighborhood revitalization, commonly in commercial areas. Special benefits typically include public safety, economic development, beautification, and streetscape improvements. Formation of a CBD requires property owners to petition the appropriate local agency and demonstrate an interest in paying for additional services. A non-profit Board of Directors typically comprised of property owners, businesses, and government representatives administers a CBD.

While CBDs may include street tree planting and maintenance, this is rarely the focus.
*
84 | CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN

APPENDIX I

APPENDIX I

APPENDIX I

APPENDIX I
Sample
Municipal Tree
Ordinance
CITY OF WILLITS URBAN FOREST MANAGEMENT PLAN | 85
Sample Municipal Tree Ordinance | APPENDIX I