Man, bad start on the day!
At first I was upset because they were making an infernal noise at 7.30 or some such in the morning. I got up to check the noise ordinance just to find out that they are indeed allowed to make noise starting at 7am. This site says only up to 75db (if I read it right), except if they can't make less noise.
While looking this up I got upset instead that no, they aren't just trimming the two trees on the neighbors property down the hill. They are cutting them down! At least one of them is all gone now and the other bigger one is going too. So sad. Those trees took 50 years to grow as big as beautiful as they got and now they are gone because their current owners wanted a bit more sun on their deck or less pine needles or some such. Idiots.
We loved those trees because they made us feel enclosed by big beautiful trees in our little tree house. Now we are all exposed. When we saw the house first I remember being miffed about the tree being just exactly not our tree. Double miffed now.
At least we still have our big tree outside our bedroom... :-( (and the one up by the street that makes Vani's car dirty when she parks in the driveway).
Ask,
You should blow the whistle on them. They have to have permits to cut down trees and are supposed to replace them with trees of a minimum size. If it was for aesthetic reasons only, then in some cities (like mine, which is admittedly tree-crazy), they have to attend a public hearing and invite all neighbors to weigh in.
Take the trees out of L.A. and we're really and truly fucked.
K
Hi Ken,
The closer one of the two was literally just a few feet away on their side of the property line (and sadly we know that fence is in the right place), so we are talking about planting a tree as big as we can afford right on our side or some such.
If we could make them replace the tree, that'd be awesome. Who would I whine to?
I found this "protect a tree" page which seems to say that unless it's a Oak on a 1+ acre property they can do whatever they want.
Idiots. We need to make the fence taller for the dog. I've been thinking we should talk to the neighbors first. I don't think so anymore. Now they'll get the biggest nastiest chain link fence we can find. With razor wire! (we can't really see the fence at the bottom of the property from the house). I hates them.
I think the beautiful tree farther away from us was 100-150 feet tall.
Maybe Vani was right after all and we should have moved to Pasadena if the city is all tree hugging. I love trees.
- ask
You would complain to the homeowners association, if you belong to one. It would be helpful if you had photos before and after. You could also try a revolutionary method: talk to your neighbor and find out whats going on. It reflects well upon you to give others the benefit of the doubt.
That is really too bad about the trees. In Ottawa, Canada where I live, we have a tree protection by-law that prohibits (and fines) anyone that does that.
If the tree is on someone else's property, they probably have the right to cut it. Trees are great but not all of them are where they need to be. Roots break foundations and invade water lines, leaves and needles create deadly mold and rot, and they also break and fall on things. I had 31 pines in my yard at my previous home and let me tell you they were a constant problem. I now have only 12 on 2 acres and no pines. Everything has it's place and small city lots are not the place for huge trees. Some things have to be looked at with intelligent and realistic views.