§ 825-150. Bond requirements.

Bonds, as required by this section, shall be in the form of letters of credit, certificates of deposit, cash bond, bonds issued by an insurance company legally doing business in the State of Florida, or other acceptable means agreeable to the city attorney. The letters of credit and certificates of deposit shall be drawn upon banks or savings and loans legally and actually doing business in Florida. Such bonds must meet the approval of the city attorney's office. This bond shall be in addition to any other bond required by any other governmental entity.

(A)

[Required.] Bonds shall be required for licenses involving the replacement of ten (10) or more trees, or the relocation of five (5) or more trees, or the relocation of any tree with a DBH of ten (10) inches or greater. Bonds may also be required to ensure the preservation of specimen trees proposed to be preserved on the project site, as deemed necessary by the community development director.

(B)

[Calculation of amount of bonds.] Calculation for the amount of bonds shall be computed based upon the equivalent canopy replacement criteria applied to each tree to be relocated or replaced, as provided in section 825-100 (Tree replacement) and upon the cost of installation and maintenance, calculated by obtaining the base price of the tree(s) from the most recent issue of the Plantfinder catalog or equivalent publication, and multiplying the base price by two and seven-tenths (2.7). The bond period shall be for the tree replacement performance period, as stated in the license or as extended or released, plus an additional sixty (60) days. The form of security shall be reviewed by the city attorney's office for legal sufficiency and may not be accepted until approved.

(C)

Release of bonds.

(1)

Upon successful tree relocation, preservation of specimen tree(s) and replacement as determined by this article and written approval by the city, bonds required for tree relocation and replacement shall be released. Where practical, bonds shall be partially released for partially successful relocation, preservation, or replacement projects, with the amount retained equal to the value of the additional replacement trees required, plus installation and maintenance.

(2)

Bonds may be released by the city when fee simple title is transferred. The city may condition the release of the bond upon the establishment of a new bond by the new owner in fee simple.

(D)

[Replacement trees in lieu of bond.] Where the licensee plants fifty (50) percent more than the required number of replacement trees and establishes a suitable maintenance plan to ensure the viability of the replacement trees, the city may recognize the additional replacement trees as suitable security in lieu of a bond.

(Ord. No. 2010-20, § 2(Exh. A), 9-14-10)