Called the city again today (they must be loving me by now) and asked that if I take of the roof and the cross beams, is that legal. If an arbor is a structure, taking away the cross beams makes it two trellises, not a structure or a fence. My inspector said, "Wow, that's a really good question. Let me go ask my supervisor." When he came back to the line, he said, "We don't know. They are still substantial elements, however, if you get the Planning Dept to sign off on it, you can have it. And while you're at it, try to get them to sign off on the entire arbor."

The inspector then told me who to talk to in planning who might be sympathetic. Isn't this great? There may still be hope to keep the entire arbor! This will definitely take some planning to make the best possible presentation, but Yee Haw in any case.