7-10-6: GENERAL STANDARDS:

Any person growing a tree or shrub located within private property which encroaches on the public right of way, or any person growing a public tree/shrub, shall comply with the following standards:

A. Pruning: Trees or shrubs shall be properly pruned for the purpose of preventing the following potentially hazardous situations: the obstruction of traffic signs; the obstruction of a clear view of street and alley intersections; the obstruction of the proper lighting of public streets and places; and the obstruction of public walks, pathways (bike), or streets. The minimum vertical clearance of trees/shrubs shall have fourteen feet (14') between the surface of a street and the lowest branch. Branches shall have a minimum of eight feet (8') between the surface of a sidewalk or pedestrianway and the lowest branch. All pruning shall be done in accordance with the City Forestry Standards of Practice and Specifications.

B. Maintenance: Public trees/shrubs shall be maintained by the owners of abutting property in accordance with this Section and the City Forestry Standards of Practice and Specifications. Maintenance shall include watering, fertilizing, insect and disease control, and pruning.

C. Avoid Damage Or Nuisance: The planting of trees or shrubs on private property which would cause a public danger or nuisance shall be prohibited.

D. Street Or Alley Intersection: The planting of trees or shrubs on corner lots or lots adjacent to an alley within the area bounded by street or alley lines of such lots and a line joining points along said street or alley lines twenty five feet (25') from the point of intersection of the public right-of-way lines shall be prohibited.

E. Dead Or Diseased Trees Or Shrubs: Dead or diseased trees/shrubs shall be subject to the following conditions:
1. Public Trees/Shrubs: The City Forester shall coordinate treatment or removal of any public tree/shrub which is so hazardous, diseased or insect ridden as to be deemed a nuisance and constitutes a hazard to other trees or shrubs or the public safety.
2. Trees Or Shrubs Located Within Private Property: The City Forester shall provide written notice to be served on a property owner by personal service or certified mail, requiring the treatment or removal within fourteen (14) days of notification of any trees/shrubs located within private property which are either dead, diseased or insect ridden so as to be deemed a nuisance and constitute a hazard to public trees/shrubs, other trees/shrubs on private property, or public safety. Such removal, pruning, or treatment as required by provisions of this Section shall be subject to the applicable City Forestry Standards of Practice and Specifications.

F. Prohibited Trees: The following trees shall be prohibited within a public right of way: black locust, box elder, Bradford pear, catalpa, cottonwood, cotton-bearing poplars, Lombardy poplar, mulberry, Siberian elm, silver maple, tree of heaven, weeping birch, white poplar, willows, conifers, or thorn trees.

G. Appropriate Trees: Trees appropriate to be planted within the public right of way or other public places are those listed in the latest edition of Iowa State University's Extension bulletin Pm-1429e "Street Trees" and Pm-1429d "Low-Growing Trees for Urban and Rural Iowa". Copies of these lists are available at City offices and through the Polk County Extension Office. Other trees/shrubs not listed within these publications, but not prohibited, may be reviewed and approved at the discretion of the City Forester. (Ord. 1398, 3-20-2000)