The Encinitas Urban Forest Advisory Committee will hear a plan Thursday to identify and remove hazardous roadside trees in the city's highest wildfire-risk zones, targeting evacuation routes in Olivenhain and Saxony Canyon.

The committee meets at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 27, in Council Chambers at 505 S. Vulcan Ave.

Committee members Caitlin Kreutz and Brad Lefkowits will present a preliminary "Trees and Fire Safety Guidance" proposal that asks a pointed question: how can the city manage roadside trees to improve evacuation safety while still meeting its Climate Action Plan canopy goals?

The subcommittee developed the proposal in coordination with the Olivenhain Fire Safe Council and Encinitas Fire Marshal Jordan Villagomez, according to the meeting's agenda packet. The Fire Safe Council supported the concept of identifying hazardous trees within city rights of way and requested continued coordination.

Villagomez told the subcommittee that the city recently adopted new ordinance measures addressing hazardous vegetation within updated CAL FIRE High and Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zones. The city has also applied for a state grant that would fund vegetation management in rights of way and open spaces and provide equipment for the Encinitas Fire Department.

Two priority areas are named. In District 4's Olivenhain, roadways near Val Sereno and the Escondido Creek watershed have mature pines contributing to fuel loading along evacuation routes. In District 1's Saxony Canyon, dense vegetation and constrained access combine with limited fire suppression infrastructure. No hydrants exist beyond Quail Hollow Drive.

The proposal calls for a targeted "remove and replace" strategy rather than broad tree removal. Replacement canopy would be planted in lower-risk areas elsewhere in the city to offset removals.

The tension between fire safety and tree preservation is not new in Encinitas. At the March 25 City Council hearing on the Native Plant Ordinance, Nature Collective chair John Helmer read a letter from Executive Director Jennifer Bright arguing that native landscaping and fire safety are not mutually exclusive and expressing support for the Fire Department's continued authority over vegetation abatement, with public safety as the primary consideration.

The committee will also consider a heritage tree nomination for a red-flowering gum eucalyptus at 1600 North Vulcan Ave. Applicant Cameron Goodsell says the tree was planted by his maternal grandparents around 1923 and hand-watered by his mother and aunts. The multi-trunk tree stands 30 feet tall with a 29-foot crown and is rated in fair-to-poor health.

A separate agenda item reviews the heritage tree ordinance itself. Committee members Mark Jenne and Matthew D. Altman found in a July review that the current ordinance language, including a newer "Heritage Grove" designation, is poorly disseminated. The city website search returns an outdated ordinance, and no easy public listing of designated heritage trees exists.

Residents can watch the meeting on Cox Channel 19, Spectrum Channel 24, AT&T U-Verse Channel 99, or via the city's website. Written comments go to [email protected] with the agenda item number in the subject line. In-person speakers may sign up starting 30 minutes before the meeting and receive three minutes per item.