Munsey Park trustees introduced a pair of local laws on Wednesday that would require residents to submit a $500 deposit with applications requesting the replacement of trees within the village.
The laws – one specifying a deposit for tree removal on public property or private property and the other for tree removal requests on neighboring properties – would require the deposit to be made per tree, trustees said.
Trustee Patrick Hance, who oversees the village’s tree and shrubs committee, said the laws were amended from similar legislation the board passed last September because trees that had been approved for removal still have not been replaced by applicants.
“We think the check should be a good encouragement for folks to plant new trees when they cut down one,” Hance said.
The deposit would be returned after the replacement tree is planted, trustees said, but applicants would lose the deposit within six months of the issuance of the permit if a new tree is not planted in its place. The applicant would still be liable for planting a new tree.
Trustees set a public hearing for the board’s July 9 meeting, after which they plan to vote on the bills.
Hance said there had been an influx of tree-permit applications in 2013 to replace trees heavily damaged during Superstorm Sandy.
But many of the more than 250 trees that received permits have still not been replaced by residents, he said.
He also said that the board would set aside funds in the coming months to plant trees within the village’s right-of-way for residents who would want them.
The board last summer amended its tree laws to allow neighboring residents to reach a compromise in determining who would be responsible for removing a tree and require a village inspection and recommendation prior to tree removal.
The board also removed a provision requiring village-approved arborists to work on a tree, but amended the law to require aborists prominently display their work permit on their trucks.
In other developments:
• The board approved a $19,000 bid to Ralph D’Alessandro Contracting to repair the walls of Copley Pond, which Munsey Park Mayor Frank DeMento said are crumbling into the man-made pond.
DeMento said the board’s initial plan was for the pond’s revitalization to be completed by Memorial Day, but bids were initially too costly.
The next step would be for bids to go out to contractors for the repaving of the walkways leading into the pond, DeMento said.
The project is being completed in conjunction with the Munsey Park Women’s Club, which has undertaken various fundraising initiatives in the last year to help finance the project.
• Trustees said they have also begun discussing ways of increasing revenues, either by establishing a fee for smaller construction jobs throughout the village or increasing fees across the board.
The board plans to hold a community-wide discussion during the July meeting before introducing a local law for a public hearing some time in the fall.
Munsey Park’s board of trustees will not meet in August.
