Monday, December 17, 2012
The 80-foot-tall spruce tree is "quite frankly, filthy" lawyer writes. Rochester City Council voted to save the tree in September.
The developer of a future home on Ferndale Street in Rochester is asking city leaders to reconsider their protection of an 80-foot-tall spruce tree whose status is marked "landmark" — even though a lawyer has labeled it "filthy." Rochester City Council said no to the request by Lombardo Homes and Seventh Street Investments in September to remove the tree. Last week, a lawyer for the developers urged councilmembers to hold another public hearing to consider the same request. "The public interest in retaining such tree is far outweighted by our client's need to remove it and the public benefits derived from removal," attorney Timothy Koltun wrote in a letter to the city. "If the city does not approve the removal of the tree our clients fully…
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Citing history and the "urban canopy," Rochester leaders won't allow a landmark spruce tree to be removed.
An 80-foot-tall spruce tree on an empty lot at the corner of Ferndale and Oak streets in Rochester will stay after city leaders denied a builder's request to remove it this week. The tree's removal hinged on a three-year-old city ordinance designed to protect such "landmark" trees, which are historic trees that meet certain criteria in size, age and health. A builder who owns the lot at 345 Ferndale asked for permission to remove the tree, which he said would be damaged in the construction of a planned home there. The city ultimately sided with history. "We made this ordinance to make our urban canopy a priority," said Mayor Pro-Tem Jeff Cuthbertson, who helped draft the ordinance. This is the first public hearing on a landmark tree …
42.689897
-83.137592
345 Ferndale Ave, Rochester, MI
/articles/despite-plea-from-builder-and-neighbor-a-tree-stays-in-rochester
/locations/7848938
Monday, September 10, 2012
The tree on Ferndale Street would make it difficult to build a house on empty lot, he says.
An 80-foot-tall spruce tree on an empty lot at the corner of Ferndale and Oak streets in Rochester is testing a three-year-old city ordinance designed to protect such "landmark" trees. Rochester City Council will hold a public hearing Monday night to hear a builder's request to remove the tree at 345 Ferndale, which the builder says would affect his ability to build a home on the lot. According to city law, removal of a landmark tree or historic tree is prohibited without a resolution passed by the city council. The owner is charged with demonstrating there is good reason to remove a landmark tree and that that reason outweighs the public interest in retaining the tree. The tree measures 4 feet in diameter and stretches about 80 feet high…
42.689897
-83.137592
345 Ferndale Ave, Rochester, MI
/articles/builder-asks-rochester-leaders-for-permission-to-remove-landmark-spruce-tree
/locations/7736543
Patricia Kane
8:31 am on Wednesday, December 19, 2012
You are correct Scott and I should have stated it different. In discussions early on the question was asked and MDOT and Oakland Cty along with the City did state should a tree, Historical /Landmark etc. be in the way, they would try to work around it and that could mean delays in the completion. But the State and the County even when I spoke with them expressed concern about protecting both the … more ›