Revised Tree Preservation Bylaw - ready for June 12 Town Meeting

The following is the "Tree Talk" column as written by Brian Charville, Chair of the Lynnfield Planning Board, published in the May 5 edition of The Lynnfield Villager.

In early April, the Planning Board voted unanimously to send a proposed Tree Preservation Bylaw to the June 12 Annual Town Meeting. The scope of this bylaw is greatly reduced and now applies only to tree removal performed in conjunction with clearly defined building activities. Consequently, it affects substantially fewer situations than the version originally proposed in autumn 2020.

The bylaw encourages protection of trees at least 6” in diameter, during specifically identified building activity within existing zoning setbacks (where building activity is already restricted). This area is the “Tree Border” where if such protected trees are removed in the course of building activity, they would need to be replaced with saplings of minimum size or mitigated by payment into the Town’s existing tree fund to support the Town’s overall tree-planting on public properties.  The bylaw does not prohibit tree removal completely – rather, in those specific building situations, removed large trees would entail either replacement or a contribution to the tree fund.

Specifically, the bylaw would apply ONLY to:  exterior building activity for new home construction or for any existing home expansion of 50% or greater; new subdivisions; projects requiring special permits or variances; and work entailing site plan approval.  Protected trees that are removed would be replaced on a 1” for 1” diameter basis (e.g. if a 6” tree was removed within the tree border, it may be replaced with three 2” trees), or property owners could pay a tree replacement fee into an existing tree fund which would reflect the DPW’s current tree purchase and planting costs (the 2021 estimate is $400 for a 2” diameter tree).

The Planning Board has been working on this initiative for nearly two years, and Planning Board members sincerely thank the many residents who provided feedback in shaping this revised and improved bylaw. This bylaw, if adopted, will provide meaningful protection for trees where there is little protection now.  We hope homeowners will view this as a positive step for tree preservation in their neighborhoods and throughout our Town.