Council OKs tree code; adopts emergency ordinance banning large-tree removal from private property Posted: March 3, 2021 1274 Development Services Director Shane Hope, at right-second row, discusses priorities for stage 2 tree regulation development. After years of discussion, citizen feedback and rewrites, the Edmonds City Council Tuesday night unanimously approved a set of new regulations aimed at retaining existing trees during development on private property in Edmonds. The council also passed an interim emergency six-month ordinance prohibiting the removal of trees greater than 24 inches in diameter from any private property unless those trees are deemed hazardous. The latter measure, proposed by Council President Susan Paine and Councilmember Laura Johnson, is aimed at giving the council time to work on additional, more detailed tree regulations to be included in city code. That additional effort — which staff outlined as stage 2 of a two-stage process for updating the city’s tree regulations — is expected to take several months, including review by the Edmonds Planning Board.