Mineola board rejects tree preservation plea

Richard Tedesco

East Hills resident Richard Brummel was apparently barking up the wrong tree when he asked Village of Mineola trustees to protect a 125-year-old red oak in the back yard of a house at 208 Roslyn Road in Mineola and its woody cousins at last Wednesday night’s board meeting.

Village of Mineola Mayor Scott Strauss said the village is already doing everything it can to preserve trees in the village.

“I think you’re under the mistaken impression that Mineola is slashing and burning its trees,” Strauss said. “We don’t take down a healthy tree unless there’s a problem.”

Brummel, who described himself as an environmentalist, presented a petition of 168 signatures of residents from Mineola and other communities in support of preserving the red oak in his second appearance before the board on that subject.

The house, Brummel said, has been in foreclosure and he expressed concern about the tree being removed if the property is sold and the house renovated. 

Brummel said the red oak he’s seeking to protect is “vulnerable” because the village doesn’t have a tree protection law in place, and he urged them to enact such a law.

“If nothing else, help me to preserve this tree,” Brummel said.

He said Mineola residents he encountered are concerned about trees being removed from the village’s landscape.

“What I’m finding from talking to the resident is that they’re unhappy with the loss of trees on their streets,” Brummel said.

Strauss said the village has undertaken an “aggressive” tree-planting policy. He said village officials conduct an annual tree survey each fall and residents have complained to him about trees planted in the utility strip in front of their houses.

Strauss also noted that East Hills is currently reevaluating its tree protection policy.

Mineola Deputy Mayor Paul Pereira said Brummel was raising an “important” issue and the red oak Brummel sought to protect was a “beautiful tree.” 

But, he said, the board also had to consider the property rights of the home’s owner.

“We have to walk a fine line between the village’s responsibility and the public’s right to develop,” Pereira said.

He said most of the people signing Brummel’s petition to protect the tree don’t live in Mineola.

Pereira said a tree protection policy is more appropriate in an area like East Hills where quarter-acre lots are common and homeowners build “MacMansions.” He also noted that East Hills requires a $100 permit fee for tree removal and said he doubted Mineola residents would want a similar policy to be enacted in their village.

“I think our residents don’t want to take out another permit and pay another fee to take a tree down,” Pereira said.

Strauss said the Mineola board is interested in protecting the trees and homeowners rights to develop their property.

“Trees are what Mineola is about. It has to do with people’s rights and what they want to do with their property,” Strauss said.

“If you’re going to defend the environment, something’s got to give,” Brummel replied.

Pereira said the village had lost 400 trees to Hurricane Sandy and is spending “tens of thousands” of dollars to replace those trees.

The village board committed $198,900 in its 2012-13 budget to purchase and plant 202 trees throughout the village, according to the village’s community forest management plan.

Village trustee George Durham said the village would risk losing more trees that residents might remove if they anticipated implementation of a tree protection act.

State Sen. Jack Martins, former mayor of Mineola, said Mineola has been a “tree city” for the past 25 years and said protecting trees in the village is a “non-issue.” 

“We plant hundreds of trees every year,” Martins said.

Reach reporter Richard Tedesco by e-mail at rtedesco@theislandnow.com or by phone at 516.307.1045 x204. Also follow us on Twitter @theislandnow1 and Facebook at facebook.com/theislandnow.

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