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' DEPARTMENT OF BUILDING INSPECTIONS. .
212 Main Street • Municipal Building ¢sv �a`
Northampton, MA 01060
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Bernard J. Fine
88 Round Hill Road, #4
Northampton, MA 01060
June 13, 2007
Re: 84 Round Hill Road, map 31 B, plot 315
Dear Bernard,
Thank you for your thoughtful letter. I will consider your position as I try to resolve this situation.
As residents of Northampton, we are fortunate to have a considerable number of resources
available to us through the colleges and universities in this area. The University Of Massachusetts
Department Of Natural Resources Conservation has an excellent graduate and post doctoral program
in forestry resources. The Stockbridge School of Agriculture offers undergraduate and graduate
degrees in Landscape Architecture as well as a nationally renowned degree program in Arboriculture
and Community Forest Management. The school has one of the most venerated arboriculture programs
in the country, dating back to 1894.
1 have been in touch with staff at the university, along with the city's tree commission and local
arborists. I've discovered that there is a generally accepted formula for appraising large trees,
commonly referred to as the "trunk formula." I also obtained the names of a number of reputable
arborists. I have passed this information along to Sequoia Properties.
I have asked that Sequoia Properties submit a landscaping plan to address the loss of the beech
tree. I've made it clear that I expect a professional, thoughtful and accurate appraisal of the lost tree
along with an updated site plan reflecting comparable value plantings.
There is no question about who selects the arborist. That decision belongs to Sequoia Properties.
As the zoning enforcement officer, I will review the proposed plans to ensure that they comply with the
site plan that was approved by the planning board. I will consult with the city's tree committee, the
planning board and the tree warden. I will certainly seek guidance from faculty at the University of
Massachusetts. I will also meet with neighborhood residents before approving the plan. Once we have
an acceptable plan in place, it will be Sequoia Property's responsibility to hire a contractor and get the
work done. My responsibility is to ensure that the end result meets zoning requirements.
The beech tree is gone and cannot be replaced but I believe we can bring this process of
remediation to a satisfactory conclusion.
Feel free to call if you have any questions. Our telephone number is 587-1240 and our office hours
are Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 4:30 pm, excepting that we close at 12:00 noon on
Wednesdays. My email address is: Ihasbrouck(a-)city.northampton.ma.us.
Sincerely,
Louis Hasbrouck
City of Northampton
Local Inspector and Zoning Enforcement
Ihasbrouck(a-)city.northampton.ma.us
cc: Sequoia Properties
r '
3
for tree replacement, the Zoning Code Enforcement Officer or the people who
originally cut down the tree. I presume that the Zoning Code Enforcement
Officer selects the company, perhaps in consultation with tree experts, but one
never knows in this uncertain world. I suspect that different "big tree"
companies have different rates of success with their transplantings and that
whoever selects the company for the Beech Tree replacement will endeavor to
determine the success rates of the various companies considered.
Sincerely,
Cc:
Northampton Planning Board, Attn. Carolyn Misch
Paul Spector, Councilman Ward 2
Northampton Tree Committee,Attn. Deb Jacobs
Residents of Yale House
Robert Jonas et al, 83 Bancroft Street
2
Tree grew up amidst the three pine trees still in the buffer zone, one can quite
readily get an idea of the height of the Beech Tree by examining the living
branch structure of the pines. They are barren of foliage for a considerable
distance up their trunks, indicating that they were shaded by the Beech and
could not grow foliage. The height of the Beech could be measured by
triangulation from the ground to the point at which the Pine trunks have living
foliage. This is somewhat difficult to determine because the pines were
irregularly shaded by the Beech, but careful study indicates the general shape of
the Beech when it was embedded within the pines. Knowing the growth rate of
Beech trees and the age of this one also gives an approximation of its height.
Conservatively estimating the growth rate at 12" a year and taking Mr. Jonas'
counting of the growth rings (80 years old), one comes up with an estimate of 80
feet tall.
Other considerations, such as cost of tree and pleas of hardship by the developer
should not enter into the determination of tree size.
2. While on the subject of tree planting, I suggest that Sequoia consider planting
one or more appropriate trees of lesser stature, but, nevertheless, of sufficient
height and conformation (to be determined, but probably around 20 feet tall) at
the lower end of the buffer zone so as to shield our view of their addition with its
two decks. In this regard, I note that Sequoia took down two very beautiful trees
of considerable size in order to accommodate the new garages they are building.
Those trees were extremely important to us, shielding us from viewing Clarke
School buildings. Sequoia will now replace our view of those trees with a view of
their condo building. While I acknowledge their legal right to do so, perhaps
they have enough regard for their neighbor's privacy and the degree to which
their project has impinged on our sense of well-being to "go the extra mile" and
plant such trees in addition to the various shrubs they intend to plant. We
would be most appreciative of such an effort. It might help reinforce our
original impression of them as well-intentioned, responsible builders. I would
also urge that consideration be given to moving the driveway of 84 Round Hill a
couple of feet closer to the house and widening the buffer zone on our side so
that plantings will be farther away from the asphalt cover of the driveway and
be better able to survive.
3. Harry Dodson suggested to me that I note that the replacement Beech Tree
and any other sizeable trees should have a two-year survival guarantee. Again,
I'm sure that you are aware of this, but mention it for the record.
4. Yesterday, a truck from Allenby Big Trees was noted on the 84 Round Hill
Road site. It would be helpful to know if Allenby was there because they
were called by you or by Sequoia. We have not been informed as to whether or
not Sequoia has been informed about the Planning Boards ruling regarding tree
replacement. Allenby's presence raises the question of who selects the company
Bernard J. Fine
88 Round Hill Road #4
Northampton, MA 01060
-------- __. ane 12, 2007
Louis Hasbrouck
Zoning Code Enforcement Officer U U 3 X007
City of Northampton
City Hall ( n
212 Main Street
Northampton, MA 01060
Dear Mr. Hasbrouck:
I'm pleased to have met you in your capacity of Building Inspector a week or so ago
when you visited 88 Round Hill Road. Now I address you as Zoning Code
Enforcement Officer.
I appreciate very much your determination that the Beech Tree that was cut down
by Sequoia Properties will have to be replaced "with some like deciduous tree(s)."
I have several questions and a few comments that I hope are relevant. You probably
are already familiar with most of them and I want to assure you that I do respect
your judgment in these matters and am not "lecturing." My intent is to have all
aspects of the problem as transparent as possible so that all parties have access to
them. I'll number my questions and concerns so that they can be easily referred to.
1. I'm not a landscape architect but am blessed with expert resources in that
regard. My daughter, Julia Hubbard, is a landscape architect in Easthampton,
Long Island (NY) and my son-in-law (Harry Dodson;
www dodsonassociates.com) is a landscape and land use consultant with
headquarters in Ashfield, MA . Their inputs and my own explorations on the
World Wide Web suggest to me that trees of very considerable size (e.g., in
excess of 60 feet tall) can be successfully transplanted. This suggests to me that
the primary limitations for size of tree selection are the ability of the
transporting and planting equipment to access the site and the probability of the
particular tree surviving transplanting (as determined by experts and statistical
evidence). Needless to say, the proximity of the Beech Replacement to hot top
paving must be considered with regard to the survival of the tree.
I have no idea of the precise height of the Beech Tree that was destroyed. The
large segments of the tree and its branches have been cut up so it is impossible to
measure them. However, I'm sure that you have noted that because the Beech