NJ homeowner cut down 32 of his neighbor’s trees — it could cost him over $1.5M

[DrQ]

NJ homeowner cut down 32 of his neighbor’s trees — it could cost him over $1.5M​

NJ homeowner cut down 32 of his neighbor’s trees — it could cost him over $1.5M

Grant Haber, of Kinnelon, chopped down 32 of his neighbor’s trees along a hilltop with Manhattan skyline views in a tony New Jersey town — and he could now be forced to fork over more than $1…

nypost.com

I'm petty. I would take the damages and erect a big highway sign and put up an advertisement for the tree cutting service he used to face his house.

 

[geist1223]

Hopefully he is required to plant trees of the same type and size that he had cut down. Full sized trees can be transplanted. But it is very expensive.

 

[DrQ]

Hopefully he is required to plant trees of the same type and size that he had cut down. Full sized trees can be transplanted. But it is very expensive.

Again, I'm petty ... Plant the replacement trees, sue him for damages, sell him the land at an inflated price and let him pay to cut the trees down again.

 

[moonstone]

I caught the people behind us cutting down some of our trees soon after they moved in. Our rural country subdivision was built on a former farm and has lots of those old stone walls with big trees that used to run along the edges of the fields throughout. The rock wall and tree line runs along the back of our yard but about 10-15 feet inside our property line. There are orange survey steaks at the corners of our yard but I guess the new folks did not see them or couldn't look in a straight line from one corner to the other. I was at home one weekday when I heard a chainsaw. I figured somebody was cutting up a load of firewood. Then I heard a tree fall. I walked out to the back of our property and found the new homeowner, whom I hadn't met previously, cutting all the maple trees down up to our rock wall. Thankfully he hadn't got to the really big trees yet. He kept saying 'all my land'! His English was not very good but I managed to explain where our property line was. I gave him a photocopy of the survey of our and the surrounding properties showing the rock wall and the property lines were. He apologized and that fall he planted a double row of pine trees that give us more privacy than the maple trees did in the winter. Since then many maple saplings have also grown in and we can no longer see the house behind us. Those people moved out a couple of years later maybe to somewhere with a bigger yard!


~Diane

 

[am1]

I guess Steve has never heard of timber rights and possibly mineral rights. But that has no bearing on the issue at hand. He is usually on point. I agree as well that if you own the land (and trees) you should be able to cut down what you want. If the government or other entity wants to save them they can buy the property.

I planted 50 coconut trees at my beach lot by the pacific ocean and every 7-10 days in the dry season would drive 2 hours each way to water them with a solar well pump giving out 3 gallons a minute. Lots of pvc pipes and and 4 100 foot garden hoses which that and the pump and solar panels had to be packed up and brought home. Also stragically placed garbage hands to fill up with water and then brought to each tree with a 2.5 gallon bucket to better spread the water around and not have to constantly moving hoses. A lot of work and time invested and sadly most coconuts will be stolen by low lifes or monkeys but I want the shade and view of the trees. Still hope to plant a part of my farm with coconut trees where they can be better managed and not right on the ocean for personal consumption.

I also have other trees at various places where I bring water either in a tank from my house or in 5 gallon buckets from the ponds up to a 100 metres away. Another losing venture but it is what it is. So I do understand the value of mature trees.

 

[am1]

Forgot to add the guy should have googled the internet on how to kill trees with poison and maybe even could have found using copper shavings. Cannot be too bright but if fighting over land to be able to see the Manhattan skyline by cutting 32 trees must have money some how. Hopefully a forced sale on their house if needed to pay the debt.