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Permits
Encroachment Permits are required for any work proposed within the City's right-of-way and includes such work as utility installations and repairs, driveway construction, sidewalk repair, filming of motion pictures and still photography, placement of obstructions in the right-of-way such as fences, trees, poles, and overhead structures.
Public Works Permits NOW ONLINE
The Public Works Department has transitioned to a new online permitting system through GeoCivix. All Public Works permit applications will now be submitted electronically using this platform.
Paper applications will no longer be accepted. The online system provides a faster, more convenient way to apply, track, and manage permits from start to finish.
Applicants can access the new Public Works permit portal at: GeoCivix - City of Ojai Online Permit Applications.
Below is a list of the Public Works applications that you can now apply for online:
- Annual Roll-Off/Dumpster/POD Storage Container Encroachment
- Annual Tree Permit Application
- Annual Utility Company Encroachment Permit (only applies to utility companies)
- Banner Application
- Encroachment Permit - Single Event
- Do not use the application if you have an Annual Utility Permit. Use the Notification of Work instead.
- Notification of Work for Annual Utility Application
- Roll-Off/Dumpster/POD Storage Container - Single Event
- Tree Permit Application (Public Right-of-Way Only) - Single Event
For questions or assistance, please contact the Public Works Department at pwpermits@ojai.ca.gov or by phone 805-646-5581 ext 202.
Trees in Ojai
A Contractor's guide to the preservation, cutting, and removal of Oak, Sycamore, Heritage, and other designated mature trees in Ojai. Please review the Municipal Code for policies regarding our tree ordinance (Title 4, Chapter 11) Chapter 11 Section Website
Helpful Documents
Trees Protected Under the Ordinance - Section 4-11.03 that Require a Tree Permit
- Heritage Trees: Regers to any tree of any genus, whether a species or hybrid of any size, which is designated as such by a resolution of the City Council based on it's historical, cultural, or other value as determined by the City Council. A listing of such trees is available at City Hall.
- Mature Tree: Refers to any tree species designated as such by a resolution of the City Council based on its historical, cultural or other value as determined by the City Council, and one-half feet above the root crown or, in the case of a tree with more than one trunk, any such tree for which the sum of its two largest trunks equals or is greater than fourteen and one-half as measured four and one-half feet above the root crown.
- Oak Tree: Refers to any single-trunked tree of the Quercus genus equal to or greater than eight inches in diameter as measured four and one-half feet above the root crown or, in the case of an oak with more than one trunk, any such tree for which the sum of its two largest trunks equals or is greater than eleven inches as measured four and one-half feet above the root crown.
- Sycamore Tree: Refers to any tree of the platanus genus equal to or greater than eight inches in diameter as measured four and one-half feet above the root crown or in the case of a sycamore with more than one trunk, any such tree for which the sum of its two largest trunks equals or is greater than ten inches as measured four and one-half feet above the root crown.
When Permits are Required
Under the ordinance a permit shall be required when performing the following on property that is in the public right of way:
- Remove, cut down, destroy, or relocate an oak, sycamore, or heritage tree.
- Prune live limbs over four inches in diameter of an oak or sycamore or heritage tree.
- If the pruning work is to be performed by a certified tree worker or similar certification deemed acceptable to the Director, a report from a certified arborist is required. The applicant shall submit the tree report with the application fee. The arborist's report shall include the number and location of affected trees and the standards to which the pruning shall be conducted to promote the health of the tree. The standards may include but are not limited to, the maximum size of the limbs and branches that may be pruned and the percentage of the tree limbs and branches that may be removed. The report should note if active bird nests are present.
- Trench, grade, fill, compact, or place construction material of any type in the drip line of an oak, sycamore, or heritage tree.
- Remove more than twenty-five of the canopy of an oak, sycamore, or heritage tree.
Tree Permit Requirements
- Complete application
- Provide photographs and site plan
- Submit an Arborist Report
- Recognize if the work is being performed during Nesting Season
- Pay fees related to the Tree Permit
Enforcement of Ordinance - Section 4-11.13
Violation; Penalty: Any person who cuts, damages, moves, or removes any oak, sycamore, heritage, or other designated mature tree within the City, or encroaches into the dripline of such tree, in violation of the ordinance shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor and upon conviction may be punished.
Violation; Restitution: Oak, sycamore, heritage, and other designated trees within the City are valuable assets to the citizens of the Ojai Valley and, as a result of the loss or damage to any of these trees, the public should be recompensed. In addition to penalties, any person who cuts, damages, or removes any tree, in violation of the ordinance, is responsible for property restitution and may be required to do any or all of the following:
- Replace the oak, sycamore, heritage, or other designated mature tree or trees so removed or damaged by the donation of or by replanting two or more of such trees of reasonably equivalent size and value to the tree damaged or removed. The number, size, and location of said equivalent replacement tree shall be determined by the Director.
- Pay double the customary tree permit application fee and provide for the replacement of the damaged or removed trees in an amount that is double their value using the appraisal standards of the ISA or another method of valuation acceptable to the Director.
Why the City of Ojai Has a Tree Ordinance
The City of Ojai adopted a Tree Ordinance in order to recognize oak, sycamore, heritage, and other mature trees as having significant historical, aesthetic, and ecological importance, and to create favorable conditions for the preservation and propagation of this unique, irreplaceable plant heritage for the benefit of current and future residents of the City. The City's General Plan Conservation and Land use Elements specifically call for the preservation of oaks and sycamores 'within and adjacent to the community'.