Watching as trees came down on a private lot near Eagle and Sandford streets, Newmarket resident Chris Howie said it is a sight he has seen happen too often.
“It feels like we’re under attack,” Howie said. “You would think there would be more of an impetus to get some protection in place.”
He has lobbied for years to get the municipality to crack down on tree removal on private properties, saying developers exploit the lack of a bylaw to clear cut before submitting development permits.
The municipality is making progress on a new private tree bylaw but Howie said companies are removing trees quickly before rules come into effect.
“Almost every day, you can see a tree care company in the neighbourhood removing a tree,” Howie said. “(The bylaw,) it’s long overdue.”
Newmarket has explored a private tree bylaw since 2019, progressing to make a draft bylaw this year in a bid to protect urban tree cover. The proposed bylaw sent out for consultation in August would require permits to remove trees on private property, with higher costs attached to remove trees for nuisance reasons or to facilitate building permits.
But while the bylaw is still in the works, some private tree removal is garnering attention. A Facebook post about trees being cut along Eagle and Sandford garnered 162 comments.
“They are destroying homes and trees for another awful eyesore in this town. I'm gutted and disgusted,” a resident wrote. “We have so many pretty trees and I love the quietness and wildlife we have living here.”
NewmarketToday contacted the tree removal company to reach the property owner for a comment, but did not receive a reply by publication deadline. A tenant on the property said the owner is considering building townhouses, but said the landlord is unwilling to provide contact information.
“This is one of the reasons I want the private land tree bylaw to get on the council agenda ASAP,” Councillor Bob Kwapis said in response to the Facebook posts.
Howie said he has pushed the town on the issue since 2013, concerned about the loss of heritage trees, adding he has cared about tree protection since working for a tree care company as a teenager.
He said older, urban trees are under strain in Newmarket, from natural causes and the recent moth infestation.
"It’s challenging for these trees in this urban forest to survive at the best of times, let alone builders taking advantage of what I call a loophole that should have been closed," he said.
Director of planning and building services Jason Unger said the town has policies to protect trees on public property and properties with active development applications, but not private land in general.
“It is understood that recently removed trees around the Eagle Street / Sandford Street area were on private property, and therefore, tree removal would have been at the landowner's discretion. At this time, the town cannot require private landowners to retain trees, although we encourage them to do so,” Unger said, adding the private tree bylaw is scheduled to come before council early in the new year. “If adopted, the town will have a stronger tool by which to require tree retention."
Howie said he has no issue with removing dead or hazardous trees, but the costs for removing trees otherwise needs to be punitive enough to discourage the behaviour.
But meanwhile, he said property owners will still be cutting down trees, something he said he is witnessing at multiple places around town.
