Shade Tree Commission urges enforcement of shade-tree ordinance, warns tree-bank money is being missed

Art Rittenhouse, chairman of the Shade Tree Commission, told the Sayreville Planning Board the commission has spent the past year reviewing the shade tree ordinance and the town's tree bank and has found repeated failures to follow the ordinance across several boards and departments. "A lot of boards and a lot of different groups in town departments are not really following what the ordinance says," Rittenhouse said, adding that, "sometimes the tree bank, certain departments think it's a piggy bank, and that has to stop also."

Rittenhouse cited recent developments, including a project on Cross Avenue, where he said no money had been contributed to the tree bank. He asked the board to review the ordinance copy the commission provided and to direct departments and development reviewers to ensure required contributions are made.

A commission representative said the tree bank is used to fund planting and maintenance the borough needs to meet municipal tree-city goals and to leverage grant funding. The commission said it will submit a copy of the ordinance to board staff and invited council and planning members to attend the commission's third-Thursday meetings for additional briefing.

The planning board did not take formal enforcement action during the meeting; members acknowledged the concern and said they would review the ordinance material left by the commission and consult planning staff as needed.

Why it matters: Contributions to a municipal tree bank fund planting, maintenance and grant compliance. The commission's concerns, if accurate, could affect how new developments and departments budget for landscaping and compliance with the borough's tree and landscaping rules.