North Haven Village Board Puts New Clearing Restrictions in Place

To protect large, mature, heritage trees from the chainsaw, the North Haven Village Board of Trustees approved a revision to the existing clearing code.

According to the new code, native species of trees with a trunk diameter of 19 inches and above will require a permit from the building inspector before being cut down. Red cedars, which grow much slower, and measure 10 inches in diameter or more, also will need a permit.

The revision states that a diseased, dying or dead tree can be removed. A tree that interferes with the building envelope — a home, pool, sport court, garage, accessory building — can be removed. If a tree poses a threat to a home, or a neighbor’s home, it can legally be removed, too. Invasive species also may be removed.

“We’ve listened to a lot of input in the last two public hearings,” Mayor Chris Fiore said before opening the final public hearing on the clearing code at the March 15 Board of Trustees meeting.

Prior to the board revising the clearing code in 2021, for decades, one needed a permit from the building inspector to remove any tree, of any size, from a property. The board felt this was far too restrictive.

Then the clearing code was revised in March 2021 and permitted any tree, of any size or age, to be removed and replaced with any other plant, such as beachgrass or small shrubs. The board felt this was far too permissive.

Over the years, contractors took advantage by clear-cutting properties and eliminating several heritage trees in North Haven, replaced by grasses and small pines.

Trustee Peter Boody wrote the new code revision after researching other villages and towns on Long Island.

“We’ve made a lot of tweaks over the last several months to try to make this reasonable and fair and not too onerous,” Boody said during the board meeting. He added that there is a list of invasive tree species excluded from the code revision. In addition, hollies and red cedars have a smaller caliper of 10 inches, because they do not grow as large as other trees and are slow growing.

“I think compared to the old policy that we had here for years, where the building inspector had to approve any tree removal at all, this is a much more flexible and reasonable set of rules,” Boody said. “North Haven is a beautiful, wooded community. If we don’t act, we’re exposing it to the threat of damage over the next few years.”

Jason Perri, a North Haven resident, said that on his property two 80-foot swamp cherry trees fell during a heavy rainstorm. “What if my son was out there playing football? … There are many of us who completely, 100 percent agree … with the merit of what you’re trying to do, but when you introduce all of this subjectivity, it makes it hard for people to manage their properties and do the right thing.” Perri added that the board should look closer at what are invasive species, and what is really a heritage tree.

North Haven resident Peter Lynch questioned whose fault is it when a contractor chops down every tree on a parcel. Fiore explained that sometimes, contractors and residents clear properties without consulting the village or the building inspector, and it is not something the village can control after the fact.

When it came time to vote after the hearing, Trustee Terie Diat voted against the code, explaining that she was “very disappointed” that the board had not expanded the criteria to receive a permit to remove a mature tree, although residents spoke up about the issue in the last public hearings.

“I think that the village should have a process whereby people can come to a board and make a reasonable case to remove a healthy tree that’s above the designated caliper,” she said, adding that the law revision was “too restrictive.” “I think it denies property owners of developed properties a right to make a reasonable change to their property, and I think that’s wrong.”

However, Boody pointed out that residents and contractors can go to the Zoning Board of Appeals to appeal. According to the newly adopted code revision, the ZBA can overturn any decision of the building inspector or arborist.

“We’re trying to protect trees from contractors first, and residents second,” Fiore explained, adding that it has been the case that contractors and residents have cut down 100-year-old trees to plant beach grass or a small shrub in its place. “I believe this is as understanding a code as you can possibly get if you want to protect a heritage tree.”

Boody added that there is room for interpretation within the code. If a resident has a reason a tree is causing a problem, there is enough flexibility in the language of the code to give residents the chance to get a permit to take it down, he explained.

“If it’s a perfectly healthy tree and it’s not causing any problem, other then you just don’t like it anymore and it’s been there for a hundred years, and to hell with that tree, I don’t like it … you are not going to get a permit to take it down. That is how the code works.”

In other news, after two years of advocating for a lower speed limit on Ferry Road, between the Sag Harbor bridge and the roundabout, the Department of Transportation has agreed to lower the speed limit from 40 to 35 mph. This change should happen within the next few months.

The heavy truck traffic, especially during the morning hours and the afternoon commute, poses a severe danger to bikers, runners, walkers, and anyone else using the bike lane, Fiore explained. “This development, along with radar speed checks, as well as increased police vigilance, will make Ferry Road safer for all of us.”

Also, in conjunction with the Brookhaven Bike Co-op, a 501(c)(3) that repairs and refurbishes used bikes and donates them to those in need, North Haven Village Hall will be accepting bike donations from March 15 to April 15, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

The co-op gives away over 1,000 bikes annually, through food pantries and social connections. The goal is to promote biking for health-related benefits, keep bikes out of landfills, and give access and freedom to people who need transportation.