Residents describe hazards, replanting after maple removal at 162 Wall Street; Kingston staff to follow up

Suzanne Kenny Hall, planning director for the City of Kingston, opened an informal Tree Commission session on April 8, 2025, and allowed two residents from 162 Wall Street to describe removing a maple tree last year after repeated branch failures that damaged property and a power line. "Recognizing that we do not have a quorum, this is not an official meeting of the Kingston Tree Commission," Hall said at about 5:13 p.m.

The residents said several large branches fell from the maple, including incidents that removed a service power line and landed on a car and the sidewalk. One resident said they paid about $1,000 for a private company to prune the tree, but more branches fell later and they decided to remove it before the winter. "We planted the gum the week after we cut down that," one resident said.

Brent Neffer, identified in the meeting as Kingston—s urban forester, and another commission member, Evan, attended but the body lacked a quorum; staff told the residents the Department of Public Works had spray-painted and flagged the stump and scheduled it for a Friday removal. Hall said staff would collect the residents— photos and video, take the material to the rest of the Tree Commission for a determination, and email the residents the commission—s decision.

The residents described repeated contacts with Central Hudson about the tree—s proximity to utility lines; they said Central Hudson told them the company would not trim trees tied to private service connections and directed them to other options. Hall advised that utilities and the city follow different pruning responsibilities, and she asked whether the homeowners had placed a locate call before planting new trees.

The homeowners said they had planted two redbuds and a sweet gum after the maple was removed. They also described recent utility work at the property: a gas line and a new outdoor meter had been moved to the driveway, which required tearing the driveway and runs over an underground sewer service. The residents pointed out yellow and blue utility flags and asked for confirmation of underground lines; staff noted the yellow flags typically indicate gas lines and blue marks water.

Because the commission lacked a quorum, no formal determination or vote was made. Hall said staff would follow up with additional records and photographs from the residents and then present the matter to the commission for a formal determination. The residents were told to provide any video and photos they had documenting the branch failures and the post-removal plantings.

The session concluded with staff scheduling a subsequent meeting; Hall asked the residents to email supporting materials and said the commission would respond by email after it reviewed the matter.