Greenwich posts tree removal notices
Multiple lindens near Hamilton Ave. School are tagged
GREENWICH — Nearly a dozen mature, leafy linden trees lining the sidewalk from Charles Street to Hamilton Avenue School provide shade to students, families and pedestrians.
But they could be chopped down, along with another handful of trees lining the perimeter of Hamilton Avenue School. Tree Warden Steve Gospodinoff posted notices on the tree trunks early afternoon Tuesday that they are slated for removal.
The Facilities Department of the Greenwich Public Schools and the town Tree Department could not be reached for comment Tuesday afternoon about the reason for the postings of removal.
The postings set off an official process outlined in the
town charter. For the next 10 days, residents can protest the removal of the trees by sending their objections in writing to Gospodinoff at sgospodinoff@greenwichct.org. Any written objection can trigger a public tree hearing to review the details.
The playing field at the school is slated to be made level, and part of that project would require the removal of trees. Advocates say the work on the field is long overdue. The project received a $424,000 interim appropriation from the town for the work to start immediately.
But on May 17, the Planning and Zoning Department denied the Facilities Department’s application for a soil and erosion plan, one of the necessary steps before construction could begin.
In a letter explaining the decision, Assistant Town Planner Patrick LaRow said Planning and Zoning had not received a response from the tree warden confirming that the trees had been approved for removal.
Planning and Zoning was also awaiting a response from the Facilities Department to a memo sent in January from the Department of Public Works noting “items” that needed to be addressed before the project’s application complied with the town’s drainage manual.
Although the letter mentioned the pending decision on the trees, Director of Planning and Zoning Katie DeLuca said the application was denied only because the Facilities Department could not provide the documents proving compliance before Planning and Zoning’s deadline to approve the plan passed.
The school district is not the only party that has recently requested the removal of trees within the Hamilton Avenue School property.
Last November, Pecora Brothers, a Chickahominy-based construction and development company, was granted permission to remove a row of arbor vitae that lined the fence separating houses from the school property. In exchange, the company was required to plant replacement trees.
Though a neighbor claimed to have written an email protesting their removal, at the time, Gospodinoff said he had received no written protests, so he allowed the vitae be removed, citing potential safety concerns for schoolchildren.
Later, the Greenwich Tree Conservancy said it was the first time the town tree removal process had not worked properly in 11 years and said a hearing should have been held. The group attributed the breakdown to the retirement of Bruce Spaman as tree warden, and said it highlighted the need for the town to replace him quickly.
To fill in the void, the town in March appointed Gregory Kramer as the new superintendent of Parks & Trees and tree warden.
Soon after, the Pecora Brothers requested the removal of five black pines and one Colorado blue spruce as part of a housing project. During a hearing on April 11, Gospodinoff read the objections of many residents and ruled to keep the trees.