Tree Ordinance Update Almost Done, Atlanta Residents Want Better Enforcement of Existing Rules

David Pendered updates the status of Atlanta's work to update its tree ordinance, expected for approval in July 2019.

A lot of the public focus on the tree ordinance during the process has come in the form of pressure to enforce the existing tree ordinance. Controversy at a development site in the Margaret Mitchell neighborhood, a resolution from the Buckhead Council of Neighborhoods, and advocacy by City in the Forest, a local non-profit are all setting the political context for the political process of updating the ordinance in recent weeks.

And the update has been a struggle, according to Pendered. "The 2001 ordinance was to have been updated in 2014. The effort was ditched after developers and residents said they wanted more input."

The most recent process to update the tree ordinance launched in 2017.