Dear editor:

I have been following closely the issues around cutting down trees on one’s own property in the town of Niagara-on-the-Lake.

The town’s “prohibitions” are draconian and perhaps have no real legal standing if a resident were to take the town to court. However, as a penurious pensionnaire retired senior aged person, I do not have the means to “challenge” the “authority” of the Town of NOTL in the matter of cutting down trees on my own property.

Allow me to sketch in a little background.

One of the reasons we (my wife of 53 years has since passed away) purchased the 1436 Concession 2 Rd. property 20 years ago when we retired back to Canada after many years in Asia, was in fact that it had so many utterly lovely trees.

Our trees are a “hotel” for birds to over-night and nest in.

Our trees host and accommodate a small army of squirrels.

Our trees have rabbits and hares living underneath low branches.

Our trees are a wind-break from the prevailing strong westerlies and the occasional frigid northerlies.

Our trees are shade from hot summer sun (and global warming).

Our trees are picturesque in the extreme, making my home visible from miles away as I am driving home … they form a “cathedral” dome over my house and out-buildings and encircle the whole property.

Our trees are linked to the geography of Niagara and to the world of John McFarland in the history of Niagara, of whom a descendant built my house around 1860. A straight line of Carolinian Honey Locust trees was probably planted before or about that time and the line bisects the property, though it is unclear what the intentions of the planter were.

Today there are more than a dozen trees still on my property of about a similar age — probably more than 200 years old.

They are quite lovely, but they can also be a problem at times.

One such time was more than 15 years ago when an April windstorm after a heavy downpour of rain loosened the earth to the extent that several of these huge trees were swaying in the wind, roots coming up out of the ground on the windward side, and one actually fell, but fortunately for my house, got caught up on the similar tree beside it — though both continued to threaten my house and would literally have smashed through the whole second storey of the house, except that we called my neighbour Mr. Wiens who came with machinery and a “crew” to stabilize the two huge 80-foot tall trees. The next day, he came again to cut up the fallen tree and take it away.

I called an Arborist to take down the second tree since it was leaning towards the house at a steep angle as a result of the other falling onto it.

Now, I guess every reader realizes I am confessing to the “heinous” crime of having cut down two trees, not just one but two mature “historic” trees on my property.

Mea culpa!

I give myself up to the “law” without a fight. To the the Town of NOTL: You are free to come with your handcuffs and take me away for bylaw breach. At my age a long prison sentence is probably as restful as old age can get. I confess. I throw myself on the mercy of the court, your honour.

Please. Mr. Zalepa, have mercy!

I simply did not have time to go to the town for the “required” permission/permit to take down those two trees (this was also on a weekend), and anyway, one was taken down by “nature” and the other was impacted by the falling of the first one and thus caused to lean precariously.

In effect, perhaps, the whole thing did not “require” township “permission” to cut them down before my house was destroyed by hundreds of tons of solid hardwood. But perhaps, Mr. Zalepa, you might clarify this situation for me, in case something similar happens again — and that is eminently possible since several more similarly huge Honey Locust trees are still nearing the end of their life spans and my house is still “right underneath” as it were.

You are welcome, Mr. Zalepa, to come check out the situation I describe so you may arbitrate my guilt of the past and possible future guilt too.

Now in addition to my concern about mature very old trees on my property, my wife and I, and latterly just I, have planted over a dozen new trees on my property, some of which are already quite large after 18 years. Now I have no intention of cutting any of these down, but I do wish clarification from you, Lord Mayor Zalepa, as to my rights to do so as it may be necessary from time to time for various reasons.

I assume the Town of NOTL bylaw regarding property owners cutting down their own planted trees on their own property is very clear on this issue, and the relevant rights of the property owner.

In fact I’d like a copy of said bylaw please, at your convenience.

I assume also that property owners inside the area of the Old town are dealt with in a similar manner as property owners in the rural areas of NOTL. I hope your response addresses this issue as well.

Since that day of the “Falling Locusts” there has not been a similar emergency but this is nevertheless eminently possible, given the old Locust trees still standing and the incredibly varying weather.

So in effect I seek from you Mr. Zalepa a kind of “blanket permission” to deal with any similar emergency as in the past expeditiously and practically, to ensure my house is not damaged and the trees do not pose a hazard to people in my yard.

Presently I also have a rather big tree whose roots are undermining the foundation of my out-building, and this tree may soon require removal.

Two other huge trees are today still well rooted but leaning precariously as a result of constant westerly winds and that by-gone rain and windstorm, and if they go down they will take out the Hydro Lines on Concession 2 Rd.

I’d love to hear your views on the above Mr. Lord Mayor Zalepa, and once again, I invite you to come visit my property to gain an idea of what rural properties are like as versus those in the Old Town and other built up areas.

Yours most sincerely,

Kaspar Pold
NOTL