Street Parkway Tree Trimming

I've had reasonable response from our city arborist, at 564-5592. They've trimmed my tree and removed hazardous tree. They've also left me the firewood-- sorry smoke averse readers.

contacting Tim Downey the cities tree guy won't be fun. the guy is a total jerk. he's been sued several times and has as many complaints filed against him than anyone else working for the city to my knowledge. he's given out $4000 pruning violation citations for people that trim a branch when they won't do it after several calls and years of waiting. on the street i live on, there are giant trees from Peru, their branches are the size of a normal tree trunk. i have these massive branches extending onto my property. when we had the micro blast storm, this block suffered severely. Tim thinks he's the king of trees and knows more than everyone. he's arrogant, rude, and thinks he can do what he wants. google Gene Tyburn/Tim Downey and grab some popcorn for the good read. Good luck with the tree problem, as long as Tim is in this position, nothing will get done. Dan Condon retired and he was the best we ever had.

We have tree tyranny in this town - property owners get severely punished if they want to deal with troublesome trees on their own property at their own expense while the city ignores its problem-causing street trees with impunity. Tree ordinances and the draconian tree czar position needs city council and public review - reassess its application over the past decade or so. We share the goal; but the execution has too many built-in and onerous problems for all concerned.

OP. My advice (not "advise") to you is to call City Street Trees. Then, if you don't see any results within a week, call again. Otherwise you'll be waiting until Hell freezes over before that Jacaranda gets any attention. (Don't be shy about calling a third time, either.)

One more city service for residents short-changed in order to pay off city employee perks and pensions.

contact the city and ask them to come out and check on the tree. they are busy, and when they have time they will come out.

They have way too many trees to be on top of it. They do it on a complaint basis. Here's what the City website says: Forestry staff plant and care for approximately 33,000 street trees of various species and sizes. Our well-trained crew performs pruning, removal of dead and hazardous trees, planting and watering of trees, and emergency tree operations.......Street Tree maintenance is guided by Municipal Code Chapter 15.20, Santa Barbara’s Tree Planting and Maintenance Ordinance, and the Street Tree Master Plan (STMP). Chapter 15.20 required a comprehensive plan for planting and maintaining trees along streets and in public areas........Residents requesting a street tree to be planted or trimmed can call (805) 564-5433.

Have you contacted the City about this? If not, it seems like a good first step.