The Lunch and Learn session on January 13th kicked off the new year with a look toward my work priorities for the first part of 2021. You may know that Toyon (Heteromeles arbutifolia) and Mexican Elderberry (Sambucus mexicana) were added to the Protected Tree Ordinance at the end of 2020. As part of the process to further strengthen the City’s tree preservation policy, we are utilizing a consultant team supporting work on the Urban Forest Management Plan (UFMP), Tetra Tech, to do a comparative cities analysis to examine which elements of Protected Tree Ordinances in other municipalities have worked well, especially in terms of implementation and enforcement. The survey will include San Francisco, San Jose, Pasadena and Los Angeles County.
I’m also beginning to prepare a Master Street Tree List, which will be ultimately based on what species will perform well in our environment and street tree planting site conditions. We will follow this with developing the methodologies for how we incorporate the City’s biodiversity goals, best practices for urban forest species diversity for pest and disease resilience, as well as the specific needs of our city’s diverse communities. I’ll be conducting outreach to determine why different communities want trees – shade, improved air quality, and biodiversity are all common goals. It’s important to note that once developed, the list will not be static and will include flexibility and a process for future updates.
You can watch the recording of this Lunch and Learn session on the DPW YouTube channel here.
Mark your calendars-
The next “Lunch and Learn with the City Forest Officer” is on February 10th at 12:30 PM. Go to zoom.us/j/98888984277
“Growing Vibrant L.A. Communities: Urban Tree Canopy Equity” is on February 9th at 10:00 AM (English) and February 10th (Spanish). Questions to streetsla.ert@lacity.org