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Regular City Council Meeting <br /> Monday,November 17, 2014 <br /> Page 31 <br /> Mr. Bilotta concurred, noting that staff was considering three separate documents <br /> as part of that effort, including construction and grading pieces. <br /> On page 1 of the Planning Commission minutes, Councilmember Etten noted the <br /> need to realistically factor in tree preservation as it related to minor home addi- <br /> tions and how to balance that out. <br /> Councilmember Laliberte opined that having new drawings available at that stage <br /> of approval would be helpful. As illustrated by the Owasso photos, Councilmem- <br /> ber Laliberte opined that residents needed to be aware of what they actually val- <br /> ued: whether it was foliage or trees, and also needed to realize the positive bene- <br /> fits in trimming or removing invasive brush; with a need to show those benefits. <br /> Councilmember Laliberte expressed her agreement with some of the comments <br /> made during the Planning Commission's discussion related to the rights of prop- <br /> erty owners and if improvements on their property ere minor in nature, where the <br /> balance came in with preserving trees and the use of their property as they desired <br /> versus a more strict application for new development. Councilmember Laliberte <br /> echoed comments of her colleagues that some trees were not invasive,but flagged <br /> as undesirable, and questioned who the City Council was to make that judgment if <br /> a large tree was providing cover, there should not be some blanket approval to <br /> remove it whether it was invasive or not; and suggested the tree could be ad- <br /> dressed over time and those species not replanted. <br /> Mayor Roe expressed confidence that the city forester could help with those clari- <br /> fications. <br /> Mr. Bilotta suggested undesirable trees could be addressed from a planting per- <br /> spective, not in preservation calculations, such as Ash Trees that were subject to <br /> emerald ash borer diseases; but if one was on the property and deemed healthy, <br /> the development should get credit for that tree. <br /> Regarding the possible addition of the full-time forester position, Councilmember <br /> Laliberte questioned which department was responsible for that position. <br /> City Manager Trudgeon advised that, at this time, staff was reviewing sharing the <br /> position between the Parks & Recreation and Community Development Depart- <br /> ments, with the current part-time position under the Parks & Recreation Depart- <br /> ment. As discussion continues if the position is expanded to full-time, Mr. <br /> Trudgeon advised that he was leaning toward the Parks & Recreation Department <br /> being the managing department, with the caveat as the job description continues <br /> to develop, that development is an important consideration in that position as <br /> well, and subject to seasonal scheduling adjustments. Mr. Trudgeon expressed his <br /> confidence that the details could be worked out. <br />