Removal of Trees and Vegetation in New York

Transcription

1 PUBLIC NOTICE PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that the Board of Trustees of the Village of Shoreham will hold a public hearing on the day of, 2016, at 7:30 P.M., at the Village Hall, 80 Woodville Road, Shoreham, New York, to consider the adoption of a local law as follows: LOCAL LAW NO. OF 2016 A LOCAL LAW ENTITLED TREES AND VEGETATION BE IT ENACTED BY THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE VILLAGE OF SHOREHAM, AS FOLLOWS: SECTION 1. ENACTMENT. A Chapter [ ] of the Village Code entitled Trees and Vegetation is enacted, as follows: [ ]-1. Legislative Intent. Trees and other vegetation provide various benefits to the environment, including the stabilization and preservation of soil, the absorption of air pollutants, and the provision of oxygen, natural barriers to noise, and habitats for wildlife, while offering an intrinsic aesthetic quality to the community. The destruction or removal of trees and other vegetation deprives the community of these benefits, while disrupting the ecological systems of which they are an integral part. It is the intent of the Village in enacting this Chapter [ ] to regulate the destruction and removal of trees and other vegetation so as to secure these various benefits. [ ]-2. Definitions. As used in this Chapter [ ], each of the following defined terms shall have the meaning indicated:

2 (1) large tree a woody perennial vegetation, deciduous or otherwise, having a trunk measuring twelve (12) inches or more in diameter at a breast height of four (4) feet above natural grade. (2) governmental entity any governmental or regulatory body, other than the Village, having purview over a Village matter. (3) plot a parcel of land located in the Village. (4) tree a woody perennial vegetation, deciduous or otherwise, having a trunk measuring one (1) inch or more in diameter at breast height of four (4) feet above natural grade. [ ]-3. Removal of Trees and Other Vegetation. A. Permit Required. Except upon issuance of a permit by the Planning Board as otherwise provided herein, no person shall cut down, kill or otherwise destroy any tree. In all events the destruction of trees by improper grading, trenching, girdling, root pruning, topping or any equally destructive practice, or by use of poisons or chemicals of any kind, is prohibited. B. Prohibitions. The cutting, killing or destruction of trees and the disturbance of natural vegetation is prohibited as follows: (1) Within twenty-five (25) feet of the boundary of one (1) plot with another. (2) Within twenty-five (25) feet of any Village street, except as required for the construction of any part of a driveway as permitted under the Village Code. property. (3) Within twenty-five (25) feet of any other Village (4) Within seventy-five (75) feet of the top of the bluff running along Long Island Sound generally in an east/west orientation, except for the trimming of trees and vegetation on said bluff, which shall be permitted. (5) On any slope regulated by any steep-slope chapter of the Village Code, except as permitted under said chapter. C. Clearing. Subject to [ ]-5E of this Chapter [ ], and except as otherwise permitted under this Chapter [ ], clearing, inclusive of the cutting, killing or destruction of trees, or the clearing of vegetation, shall not exceed the following: (1) On residential plots: - 2 -

3 Plot Size (in square feet) Percentage of Plot Area Allowed to be Affected 1 to 15,000 75% 15,001 to 30,000 60% 30,001 to 60,000 50% 60,001 to 90,000 35% 90,001 to 120,000 30% 120,001 or greater 20% (2) On nonresidential plots, as determined by the Planning Board as an element of site-plan review, but in no event to exceed 75% of the area of the subject plot. D. Invasive Plants. Poison ivy, bittersweet and other similar invasive plants may be removed without a permit provided only invasive plants are so removed, and only if hand tools are used to effect such removal, and soil disturbance is minimal. [ ]-4. Application. A. Planning Board. Any application under this Chapter [ ] shall be submitted to and heard by the Planning Board. B. Standards of Review. Upon consideration of any application made under this Chapter [ ], the Planning Board shall address at least the following: (1) Necessity. The removal of any tree or vegetation is necessary to allow the permitted use of the subject plot. (2) Water Runoff. The removal of any tree or vegetation will not intensify or cause erosion or surface water runoff from the subject plot. (3) Hardship. The removal of any tree or vegetation is required by reason of hardship, which is neither self-created nor shared by the community, and is unique. (4) Minimum Necessary. The removal of any tree or vegetation is the minimum necessary and performed in a selective manner. C. Documents. As circumstances warrant, the Planning Board may require submission of an accurate survey depicting in detail the inventory of trees on a plot, the trees to be preserved, the trees to be removed and other information reasonably required to enable the Planning Board to act under this Chapter [ ]

4 D. SEQRA. Any application under this Chapter [ ] shall be an Unlisted Action and a Long Environmental Assessment Form shall be required. E. Large Trees. Any provision of this Chapter [ ] to the contrary notwithstanding, including by way of illustration, the provisions of [ ]-4(C) of this Chapter [ ], no large tree may be cut, killed or destroyed even if such tree is within the allowable building envelope of a plot, or otherwise not regulated under this Chapter [ ], unless an application for cutting, killing or destroying such tree is approved by the Planning Board upon an evaluation of whether: (1) There is any feasible alternative which allows the reasonable improvement of the subject plot, but preserves such tree. (2) Such tree is a danger to the public or the owner or residents of the subject plot. (3) The location of such tree prohibits altogether the permitted use and improvement of the subject plot. (4) Such tree feasibly can be moved. (5) The applicant s hardship is self-created. [ ]-5. Exemptions. Tree removal by any utility company or public agency is exempt from the provisions of this Chapter [ ]. [ ]-6. Village Property. Except as conducted by the Village or its authorized representative, no tree and no vegetation on Village property shall be cut, killed, destroyed, removed or otherwise damaged by any person. [ ]-7. Enforcement. This Chapter [ ] may be enforced by the Building Commissioner, Building Inspector or any Village Code Enforcement Officer, each of whom is hereby vested with authority to enforce the provisions of this Chapter [ ], and any enforcement shall include a rebuttable presumption that the person responsible for any violation under this Chapter [ ] shall include, but not be limited to, the record owner or the occupant of the subject premises, and any person actually engaged in the unauthorized removal of any tree or vegetation

5 [ ]-8. Penalties. A. Schedule of Fines. Any person who violates any provision of this Chapter [ ] shall, upon conviction, be subject to the following penalties: (1) For a first offense, a fine of one thousand (1,000) dollars. (2) For a second offense, a fine of one thousand, five hundred (1,500) dollars. (3) For each subsequent offense, a fine of two thousand (2,000) dollars. B. Schedule of Additional Fines. All fines on all penalties authorized in [ ]-6A of this [ ]-6 shall increase, as follows: (1) At thirty (30) days from issuance, minimum fine shall be doubled. (2) At sixty (60) days from issuance, minimum fine shall be tripled from original amount. (3) At ninety (90) days from issuance, twenty (20) dollars shall be added to the maximum fine. [ ]-9. Repealer. This local law upon its effect date shall in all respects repeal and supersede 4, 36, 41 and 1000 of Village Ordinances of 1951, 1967 and 1989, and Village Tree Preservation Local Law No. 2 of 2005, and any similar local law heretofore adopted by the Village Board, each of which is hereby repealed. [ ]-10. SEQRA. Enactment of this local law is a Type II action under 6 NYCRR 617.5(c)(6) and (27). [ ]-11. Severability. If any provision of this Chapter [ ] is ruled unconstitutional or invalid, such ruling shall not affect the validity of any other provision of said chapter or said chapter as a whole

6 SECTION 2. EFFECTIVE DATE. This local law shall take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State as provided by law. All persons in interest will be heard by the Board of Trustees at the public hearing to be held as aforesaid and may appear in person or by representative. The Village Hall is accessible to handicapped persons. Dated:, 2016 BY ORDER OF THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE VILLAGE OF SHOREHAM BY: Cathy Donahue-Spier, Village Clerk - 6 -