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Should
town
protect
trees?
By Naomi Smoot-Kimble
Rappahannock News Staff Writer
Some residents in the town of Washington, including the new chairman of the town Planning Commission Barbara Stockton, are alarmed by how vulnerable trees in the village seem to have recently become. She said that several have fallen and others have been chopped down needlessly. Those still standing, she feared, may also be in grave danger.
The town acknowledged the concerns which she and others have recently voiced on this issue and have begun considering ways to protect these most vulnerable of residents. One such measure is a town tree ordinance.
County Administrator John McCarthy presented a draft of this document during the Planning Commission's meeting Monday evening. He said he had used several other tree ordinances already in place in other towns as guides in creating this draft.
This proposed ordinance would provide protection for trees in town, making it a Class 1 misdemeanor to harm trees which have been designated for protection.
Protected trees will include those on town property and those which are donated for designation by town landowners. It would also be possible for the town to designate trees on private property for protection. In such cases, compensation would likely be given to the tree's owner.
While neighbors would be allowed to trim a designated tree which had grown and was encroaching on his or her property, all others who harm the tree would be subject to a fine of up to $2,500, according to commission member Jean Goodine.
See TREE, Page A8
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