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Tree board approves removal of three trees at 4024 Eleventh Street; mitigation required to limit erosion
Summary
The Tree Board approved after-the-fact and pending permits to remove three large trees at 4024 Eleventh Street, ordered 1-for-1 replacements from the approved list, and required measures to minimize slope erosion.
The Chesapeake Beach Tree Board on June 3 approved permits to remove three large trees at 4024 Eleventh Street — one cherry tree already removed and two poplars slated for removal — and required mitigation to limit erosion and replace canopy in the critical-area lot.
Planning staff reported one cherry had already been removed and two poplars remained; the applicant said one poplar had been struck by lightning about 15 years earlier and the trunks and crowns were in poor health. All three trees exceed the ordinance’s 50-inch circumference threshold and therefore are protected under Chapter 2-63.
Because the lot sits in Chesapeake Beach’s designated critical area, the planner recommended one-for-one replacement with medium-to-large trees from the town’s approved list and that stumps be cut flush while leaving root networks intact until replacements are established to reduce slope erosion. The planner also recommended removal of invasive vines from trees across the property to protect remaining trees.
Applicant Cary Daley told the board she and her spouse view the trees as a safety concern. Board members and a tree-service representative discussed the slope and groundcover and generally supported the recommendation to leave stumps and roots in place and to limit disturbance on the slope. “I think leaving it flush cut…would be the best approach not to create more problems,” one board member said.
The board voted to approve the permit recommendation with the conditions: replace removed trees one-for-one with appropriate species from the approved list, remove invasive vines from other trees on the property to protect them, leave stumps/root networks in place to stabilize the slope, and complete replacement plantings within six months or face the ordinance’s maximum penalty for noncompliance. The board also recommended a $300 fine for the after-the-fact removal and said staff will clarify any fees already paid when the formal letter is issued.
