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Cutting down trees should only be done if absolutely necessary, i.e. if the tree is diseased and must be cut down before it falls down and hurts someone.
On the civic level ... New Rochelle in Westchester County started an innovative project installing some rubber sidewalds made with recycled old tires ... these sidewalks are installed around street trees and apparently avoid the dangerous circumstances of raised concrete slabs from tree roots. This saves the town money and saves the trees.
New Rochelle On-line (http://www.newrochelleny.com/new.asp?id=419 - broken link)
One couple came from the city and bought a house. The previous owners kept a rhododendron hedge trimmed and neat. When it bloomed, wow, it was something else. Well those people came in and first thing they did was cut it down. Sad to see it go. Their home, so they can do what they want. But I'm willing to bet they had no idea what it was.
If I were moving into a house, first I would find out what everything is before I decide what to do.
However, if a tree is right against the house or a branch hanging over the roof, I would cut it down or off or if a tree is diseased, then I would cut it down. Other than that, I would leave them up
You have to be a royal pain in the patoot, be familiar with the code, and willing to put in a little research to see what you are up against.
As I don't know whether or not you could be this same individual, I won't post details on the public forum. None of our actions were illegal, but the details are very specific to this particular case.
You know me. I am not this person. I was just curious what can be done to stop someone.
When the neighbor claimed he loved trees and moved here because of the heavily treed lots, then started removing trees in the evenings, we knew we were in for trouble.
Photos.
Neighbor statements.
FOIL.
Know your local code.
Report each incident to the law department as soon as it happens.
Follow up on all incidents.
Report all incidents to the building department.
Be a major pain in the patoot and look for small errors -- we got them once on failure to post permit.
Speak with the people in an special offices that the permit has to go through. (Great resource)
Know who you are dealing with. Do the background search.
Suffolk County Clerk's office had a great website with all sorts of property info. I found lots of details out about the neighbor before the site was shut down because SSNs were visible.
Listen to your neighbors. One man found out that the homeowner wasn't making a lot of money to support a mortgage and HELOC on the house, in addition to the rental he was in, while supporting his family.
Go to the newspaper. I got to know one local Newsday reporter who gave me some names.
I wonder if all the tree admirers out there would be so quick to offer up their opinions if they had to shell out the moola to keep the trees in perfect healthy condition and to clean up the "fantastic foliage" they admire oh so much, when it drops in the fall? I have a tree that puts out 20+ bags every fall, any volunteers for clean-up duty? How about the 4-5 year tree trimming that I have done to ensure the branches don't come down on a passerby's head?
20 bags for one tree? Must be one heckuva HUGE tree.
I have 20 mature oaks on my property, in addition to dogwoods and beech trees. We won't take all the evergreens into account as they are not deciduous. As one of the "tree admirers" I pay for pruning, and drop at least $1K a fall in leaf clean up. I have had to take down trees in the past for construction and tried to situate one project in a manner which would affect the fewest trees.
People who come in and lop down trees because they drop leaves shouldn't buy houses with trees. My late, g-grandma said some terrible things in Spanish about the one single tree in her yard in Queens when she moved there from another borough. The tree died a year or so after she did. I don't know if it was some sort of posthumous getting even with the tree, but we all found some comfort and humor in the situation.
I've dealt with a new neighbor, former urbanite, who had no idea what to do with his trees. Out of ignorance he was prepared to remove them, but as we walked with him we explained that the former owner was ill and had allowed vines to creep up into the trees. One 'arborist' was ready to have him remove most of the trees (over $2K per tree X6) but when he asked a few neighbors about the prices he opened the door to learning about his trees. He saved a lot of money, had a decent, honest licensed tree guy come in and cut the vines, prune the branches and remove 1 tree which was diseased.
I wonder if all the tree admirers out there would be so quick to offer up their opinions if they had to shell out the moola to keep the trees in perfect healthy condition and to clean up the "fantastic foliage" they admire oh so much, when it drops in the fall? I have a tree that puts out 20+ bags every fall, any volunteers for clean-up duty? How about the 4-5 year tree trimming that I have done to ensure the branches don't come down on a passerby's head?
You should probably go back to Brooklyn. Just an idea.
[quote=OhBeeHave;13009057]20 bags for one tree? Must be one heckuva HUGE tree.
It is, standing over 75 feet tall and is over 80 years old - I would need a crane if it ever had to be removed. The base of the trunk could have four people with arms extended to encompass it. What some people call tree trunks are the limbs on this tree. It covers the entire front yard, part of my neighbors property and part of my driveway and roof with it's canopy. If it ever fell on my house, I'd need a new house. I'm more concerned that a limb doesn't come down on a passerby. BTW, it's a Northern Red Oak which turned out a bumper crop of acorns this year, which my neighborhood squirrels have been extemely appreciative of this winter (they also call the oak their home). I also have a dogwood, cherry blossom, sassafrass, two maples and numerous assorted fruit trees.
Trees are nice - foliage, firewood, acorns for the local wildlife, reduced a/c costs on the house. Downsides include, lots of leaf clean-up especially in mid to late December, oaks are one of the last to drop leaves. Pruning can be expensive, especially if if requires additional help, like a bucket truck. I've dropped close to $2k in the last two years, pruning and removing dying trees - on the plus side, I've got alot of firewood.
You should probably go back to Brooklyn. Just an idea.
We had tons of trees in Brooklyn - difference was, not many people cared about cleaning their property. The let the leaves lie where they stood.
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