Franklin Zoning Ordinance

17 246 Chapter Tree Protection NATURAL RESOURCES Franklin Zoning Ordinance Effective December 30, 2019 6. Areas that could serve to extend existing greenways, trails, parks, or recreation areas; and 7. Areas needed for buffers or historic resource edge treatments. E. Removal of Trees in Tree Save Areas The removal, damage, or destruction of trees within a tree save area shall be a violation of this Ordinance and require mitigation in accordance with the following standards: 1. Any tree that is damaged or removed from the tree save area shall be replaced at a rate of two caliper inches per one caliper inch removed, with each replacement tree having a minimum diameter of two caliper inches. If the total caliper inches removed cannot be determined, the area subject to tree removal shall be replanted at the rate of 80 trees per acre for each acre disturbed, or portion thereof. Replacement trees shall not be used to meet any other landscape requirements. 2. Replacement trees for trees removed from the tree save area shall be planted in the tree save area or, in cases where adequate room is not available, planted elsewhere on the lot or development site. In cases when adequate room on the lot or development site is not available as determined by the DRT, mitigation may take the form of payment to the City tree bank, pursuant to Subsection 17.2.8, Tree Bank. 3. Following notice of violation related to this Section by the Department of Building and Neighborhood Services, no review body shall review or approve any applications for the site from the date of the violation until: a. A replacement plan has been approved by the Department of Planning and Sustainability and a guarantee for the associated replacement has been established in accordance with Chapter 21, Performance Agreements; or b. Payment has been made to the City’s tree bank in-lieu of providing some or all of the required replacement trees. 17.2.5 Protection of Specimen Trees A. General Protections 1. Specimen trees shall not be cut, removed, pushed over, killed, or otherwise harmed, except as exempted by Subsection 17.2.1 and allowed by Paragraph 17.2.5.C, Removal and Replacement of Specimen Trees. 2. The area within the critical root zone, known as the tree protection zone, of any specimen tree shall not be subject to any disturbance unless the disturbance is based on an ISA certified arborist report stating that the proposed construction shall cause no harm to the tree and is approved by the Department of Planning and Sustainability. B. Designation of Critical Lots Individual single-family residential lots with specimen trees shall be identified on the site plan as critical lots, pursuant to Subsection 20.15.2, Critical Lots. Critical lots shall be denoted on the final plat on each individual lot with a specimen tree, which shall be preserved and cannot be removed.