By Emily Chesnic
Before taking down trees – presumed to be dead – on private property, Northfield Center Township must confirm it needs to mitigate the risk for the safety of the community.
Whether or not trees, located at a home at 9097 Pleasantview Drive, abutting Skylane Drive, are a present danger was debated by the trustees and village officials at a special meeting Dec. 14.
Trustee Paul Buecher said he examined the property himself and knows the trees must come down soon or they will severely harm someone, as large branches from the trees at the home have come down in the past, into the roadway.
Trustees Rich Reville and Russ Mazzola agreed the trees likely should come down, but more information on the trees is needed before a decision is made to go on private property to remove them.
Reville and Mazzola failed to approve a proposed order to remove the dead trees, pursuant to Ohio Revised Code section 505.87, with Buecher voting in favor of the resolution.
The trustees heard from township Zoning Inspector Don Saunders on the matter, who has been on site. He agreed the trees in question may cause harm to someone but said he would feel more comfortable having an arborist declare the trees as “dead.”
“You do not need to be an arborist to see these trees are dead,” Buecher said.
Assistant Prosecuting Attorney with the Summit County Prosecutors Office, Raymond Hartsough, who took part in the meeting, said the township, per the statute, can legally take trees down from a property if one is actively falling or if certain one will come down quickly if action is not taken. Legally, the township must confirm the trees present a clear danger to the roadway and public before removing them, he said.
“You do have a legal duty to keep the roads safe, and if that means going on private property to take down trees, so be it,” said Hartsough.
Since the township has never removed trees on private property before, Reville and Mazzola were hesitant to move forward without conducting further research on the matter.
Hartsough recommended the township identify which trees need to come down, posting a notice on them, so the property owner can respond to the issue. Buecher said he is certain, though, the property owner will continue to ignore the matter, and the dead trees will injure someone soon.
He said the property not only has tree issues but has been found to be a nuisance for other reasons, including failure to cut grass and the presence of high weeds.
“I have been there. We have posted warning notices on the garage and nothing gets done,” Buecher said of the property.
Hartsough confirmed the township must identify the trees as being currently dangerous, relying on Saunders’ expertise on the issue, before moving forward.
“It has to be more than a tree might come down,” he said.
Buecher still wants the township to act quickly to remove at least two trees, at a cost of about $1,000 a tree.
“All you have to do is drive by or walk by and you will see the danger. I have driven over the trees there that have come down already,” he said. “I understand the legalities, but we have to protect the people.”
Reville and Mazzola agreed they want to do the same, but in the proper manner.
“We have to figure out the right way to do this,” said Mazzola.
Trustees confirmed the situation will be revisited soon, as a further investigation is conducted.
Additionally, at the special meeting, the trustees authorized a purchase order for $5,196 for the repair of the township’s leaf vacuum.
Trustees also approved a proposal from Site Tech Inc. to finish needed work at Beacons Hill Park.
