[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Naples 2-16-2005 by L.L. No. 2-2005. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Naples
has determined that it is in the interest of the citizens of the Village
of Naples to promote and protect their health, safety and welfare
to adopt a shade tree ordinance. The Board of Trustees recognizes
the role that trees play in the Village ecosystem and that they contribute
to the quality of air, reduce noise and visual pollution, help to
moderate climatic extremes and conserve energy, and the Board further
recognizes the role trees play in enhancing property values and the
general quality of life in the Village. In order to establish a responsible
program for planting, maintenance, husbandry, or removal of trees
or shrubs in the Village, the Board of Trustees finds it necessary
to establish a Shade Tree Commission and to adopt this chapter to
provide an orderly framework to maximize the benefits afforded by
trees within the Village.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Any trees, shrubs, bushes and all woody vegetation on land
lying within public parks having names and in all areas owned by the
Village and to which the public has access.
Any trees, shrubs, bushes and all woody vegetation on land
lying within a public street or right-of-way within the Village.
The Village Shade Tree Commission shall consist
of five Commissioners who shall be appointed by the Village Board
and who shall serve without compensation. The Shade Tree Commission
shall inventory all public trees within the Village and shall study,
investigate, and from time to time update the condition of all such
public trees. The Shade Tree Commission shall periodically counsel
the Village Board of Trustees on how best to manage the public trees
and shall prepare and update a written plan for the public safety,
care, preservation, pruning, planting, replanting, removal or disposition
of trees within the Village of Naples easements, streets, and Village
parks. This plan shall also include a provision for public education.
A.
The Board of Trustees of the Village of Naples shall
have the right to plant, prune, maintain and remove trees and woody
plants within the limits of all Village streets, rights-of-way, or
parks. The Board, in appropriate cases, and upon consultation with
the property owner, may remove or prune a tree which stands upon private
property but which threatens the safety or welfare of those who may
use a Village street or park.
B.
The Shade Tree Commission may recommend the removal
of any tree or part thereof within the limits of any street or public
park which threatens the safety or welfare of any person or which
by reason of its location or nature threatens any electric line, telephone
line, gas line or any municipal water or sewer line or any public
improvement, or which is affected by any injurious fungus, insect
or other pest or disease.
C.
It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, corporation, or other
entity to top any park tree or public tree. "Topping" is hereby defined
as the severe cutting back of limbs to stubs larger than three inches
in diameter within the tree's crown to such a degree as to remove
the normal canopy and disfigure the tree. Trees severely damaged by
storms or other causes, or certain trees interfering with utility
lines or other obstructions where other pruning practices are impractical
may be exempted from this subsection at the determination of the Shade
Tree Commission.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
D.
All stumps of park trees and public trees shall be removed below
the surface of the ground so that the top of the stump shall not project
above the surface of the ground.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
E.
Species
of trees to be planted shall be selected from a list provided annually
by the Shade Tree Commission.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
F.
The spacing
of public trees shall be in accordance with the recommendations provided
by the Shade Tree Commission.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
G.
The distance
trees may be planted from curbs or curblines and sidewalks shall be
in accordance with the three species size classes, and not trees may
be planted closer to any curb or sidewalk than the following:
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
H.
No public
tree shall be planted closer than 35 feet to any street corner measured
from the point of nearest intersecting curbs or curblines. No public
tree shall be planted closer than 10 feet to any hydrant.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
[Amended 7-16-2008 by L.L. No. 4-2008]
No person shall remove, destroy, or cause the
removal or destruction of a tree on any Village street or in any Village
park, or undertake construction or any activity which may significantly
and prematurely detract from the health or growth of a tree, without
first having obtained written permission for such removal or construction
at the office of the Village Clerk. All applications must be approved
by the Shade Tree Commission and all approvals shall be in conformance
with the Shade Tree Master Plan.
[Amended 7-16-2008 by L.L. No. 4-2008]
Any violation of this chapter shall constitute
a violation within the meaning of the Penal Law of the State of New
York, and an appearance ticket alleging such violation may be issued
by any police officer having jurisdiction. A violation of this chapter
shall be subject to a fine of not more than $250 or imprisonment for
not more than 15 days, or both.
A.
The Village Board of Trustees shall have the right
to review the conduct, acts, and decisions of the Shade Tree Commission
and of its individual Commissioners. The Board of Trustees shall have
the power to remove individual Commissioners and to appoint new Commissioners
as may be necessary. Each Commissioner shall serve until he or she
resigns or is removed by the Village Board.
[Amended 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
B.
Any person who is aggrieved by any decision of the
Shade Tree Commission may appeal the decision within 10 days of the
filing of the decision with the office of the Village Clerk. The appeal
shall be heard by the Board of Trustees within 30 days of the filing
of the appeal in the office of the Village Clerk. The Board of Trustees
shall make and file its decision with the Village Clerk within five
days of its hearing.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
No license shall be required of any entity performing tree work
that has been approved by the Village Board of Trustees, Shade Tree
Commission, or Village Superintendent of Public Works.
[Added 4-15-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013]
It shall be unlawful for any person to prevent, delay, or interfere
with the Shade Tree Commission or any of its agents while engaging
in and about the planting, cultivating, mulching, pruning, spraying,
or removing of any park trees or public trees or trees on private
property as authorized by this chapter.
