Saving one tree at a time
Here's some good news regarding our shedding light on situations where trees are being destroyed and building permits are being ignored. I know a lady who is one of the culprits when it comes to paying fines rather than doing the right thing. She is older, single, no kids, no husband and I joke with her that she wants to take it all with her, because her goal these days seems to be destroy and conquer for the highest buck. It's all about the money with her, by her own admission.
From her own mouth, "I would rather pay a fine and just cut down the trees." But the good news is that her partner, the main guy, has put a stop to this. He told her that from now on, they will abide by all laws (admitting that they have not done so in the past) and that they will follow all permit and legal issues when building their white, square box properties.
No more killing trees and paying fines later (you know, do it first, apologize later), and no more building illegally with multi dwellings on one site and building up too high. Maybe he is concerned about getting bad press and wants to be a good neighbor? They are building around trees now, accommodating the trees, not the structure they are building.
The older lady is the front for the operation, because, "no one will argue with a little old lady." But this little old lady is a shark. And she has finagled her way around planning and zoning for years. Glad to see her partner has reined her in. The first step to being a good Grove neighbor.
Speaking of our trees - there's a great Letter to the Editor in the Herald here: Coconut Grove's Trees.
From her own mouth, "I would rather pay a fine and just cut down the trees." But the good news is that her partner, the main guy, has put a stop to this. He told her that from now on, they will abide by all laws (admitting that they have not done so in the past) and that they will follow all permit and legal issues when building their white, square box properties.
No more killing trees and paying fines later (you know, do it first, apologize later), and no more building illegally with multi dwellings on one site and building up too high. Maybe he is concerned about getting bad press and wants to be a good neighbor? They are building around trees now, accommodating the trees, not the structure they are building.
The older lady is the front for the operation, because, "no one will argue with a little old lady." But this little old lady is a shark. And she has finagled her way around planning and zoning for years. Glad to see her partner has reined her in. The first step to being a good Grove neighbor.
Speaking of our trees - there's a great Letter to the Editor in the Herald here: Coconut Grove's Trees.
posted by Tom Falco at 5:00 AM
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7 Comments:
Keep up your great work and don't let them get to you because it takes all kinds as you know and a lot of them just don't get it!
I hope you are referring to the situation at 3099 Indiana St.(on the corner of Shipping and Indiana)the Tree Man Trust is having a hearing at City Hall on Sept. 9 about one of the few remaining trees. Last year a "little old lady" had many trees removed on said property without a permit and was fined accordingly.
Tell Russell to raise the illegal tree removal penalty from $500 to $5,000 or $10,000?
Why is the penalty so low? $25,000 per instance should serve as a deterrance.
The developer at 3099 Indiana is Rene Diaz, a notorious tree killer. He killed and removed the last three Dad County pines on Indiana Street and we had him up before the code enforcement board for damaging the roots os a grandfather oak tree. He got away with it, but the guy he built the house for had to pay for mitigation. He also installed Chinese drywall in one of his crappy townhouses on Indiana. People like that guy should not be allowed to build anything in the Grove.
So what has Russell done so far to protect our trees and neighborhoods from split zoning? Perhaps he could prepare a statement on their accomplishments and game plan for the future and share it with us so that we feel a bit confident that he is indeed on our side.
I have yet to hear back from Russell regarding my emailed concerns about the tree removals with bogus claims of disease. At least I always received a reply from Mark Sarnoff with all matters. We definitely need a huge increase in the fine but also diagnoses that are truthful from arborist who are not paid off. The zoning needs changes for the center and west grove to stop the duplex boxes that are a blight on the landscape. This density increase for these neighborhoods is getting very bad for existing residents. New residents dont realize its not good architectural standard to look out your window to see a concrete wall a few feet away.
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