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2- The Oakville Beaver, Wednesday October 1, 2008 www.oakvillebeaver.com Town hopes bylaw curbs clear cutting Continued from page 1 Recent years have seen some developers purchase properties and remove all of the trees prior to filing a development application with the town. By cutting down the trees first, they avoid the possibility of having potentially-expensive tree protection plans imposed on them through the development process. The clear-cutting problem has been particularly significant in south Oakville, where large and often heavily-treed lots have attracted the attention of developers. Noting that the bylaw "plugs the (development) loophole" Mayor Rob Burton said it will still allow homeowners to remove any dead tree, and up to four mid-sized trees a year with no permit cost. "These exemptions alone mean that the vast, vast majority of homeowners are extremely unlikely to ever encounter the bylaw," he said. The point was echoed by Ward 6 councillor Tom Adams, who noted, "For the vast majority of trees in Oakville that will be impacted by this bylaw, we're just collecting data. We're not imposing costs, we're just collecting data." By requiring residents to notify the town 24 hours before removing a midsized tree, staff hopes to build a database that will track the town's canopy cover, cause of lost trees, and potentially, insect or disease movement. The no-cost notification process will be done through a form available from "This bylaw creates more bureaucracy. It's costly and it encroaches on private property." . Ward 6 councillor Max Khan, one of three councillors to vote against the tree bylaw the Town. Property owners wishing to remove more than four trees will have to obtain a permit at a cost of $200 per tree, while those wanting to remove any tree over 76 cm in diameter will need a $500 permit. The Town may refuse to issue a permit for very large or particularly special species of trees. It may also require the planting of replacement trees or a payment into the Oakville's Tree Replacement Tree Planting Fund, which will be used to replant trees and support tree health education programs. For trees on property boundaries, a permit will only be issued with the written consent of the adjacent property owner. Violators of the bylaw may be punished with fines ranging from $500 to $100,000, or even more if it can be shown that they gained an economic advantage by ignoring the rules. The new bylaw was opposed by Councillors Keith Bird, Fred Oliver and Max Khan. Khan suggested the town would be better off to increase the $75,000 each year it currently spends on planting new trees in established areas to $500,000, rather than spending money administering and enforcing the bylaw. "This bylaw creates more bureaucracy. It's costly and it encroaches on private property," he said. It isn't yet known how costly the bylaw will be. Town staff had suggested hiring one full-time bylaw enforcement officer and one full-time clerk, at an annual cost of $195,000, to administer the program. However, when councillors balked at that cost, CAO Ray Green said he may be able to find ways to do it more cheaply, and will present staffing options to the town's Budget Committee later this year. The private tree protection bylaw is scheduled to be reviewed after one year. It's Official... Come In Now to Swiss Interiors for your Last Chance to purchase Heirloom Quality furniture by Gibbard at Great Savings! 217 Lakeshore Road East Downtown Oakville Since 1953 www.swissinteriors.com 905.844.3530