Tree Workshop, Commission Meeting Tonight at City Hall

The Safety Harbor City Commission will convene for its regularly scheduled bimonthly meeting tonight at 7:30 p.m. at City Hall.

The agenda for tonight’s meeting can be viewed here.

Prior to the meeting, the commission will host the latest in a long line of public workshops dedicated to refining its proposed draft tree ordinance. The workshop is scheduled to begin at 6:00 p.m.

According to City officials, this workshop will focus on finalizing the document by taking into account recent recommendations made by the Planning and Zoning Board.

“The City Commission has requested this final workshop…to discuss the final draft ordinances and to discuss the comments made by P&Z during their public hearing last Wednesday night,” City Manager Matt Spoor said.

Looking at the agenda notes for tonight’s workshop, the tree ordinance has been broken down into five separate sections:

• 2015-02: wetlands and buffers
• 2015-03: trees & tree removal
• 2015-04: minimum tree requirements; parking lot landscaping; screening & water conservation
• 2015-05: cross-references & terms (trees)
• 2015-06: increase in removal of protected trees constitutes a major modification to a development

If the commission can come to a consensus on all the items related to the ordinance tonight, the item will be placed on the agenda for a pair of public hearings in March with an eye towards enacting the ordinance by April 1st, which is when the City’s moratorium on tree removals is set to expire.

The Safety Harbor City Commission meets at Safety Harbor City Hall, located at 750 Main Street in downtown Safety Harbor.