Tuesday, Dec 24th

Tree Trouble

My own family appeared in the Scarsdale Police Blotter this week and here is our story. Our neighbor has very large pine trees on her property, bordering our driveway and looming over our house. They are 5 -6 stories tall, and top heavy, as many of the lower branches have snapped off. In the big storm in March, one of these trees broke in half, hitting the back of our house and totaling our car. After the incident, rather than express any remorse, our neighbor complained about the necessity of cutting up the fallen tree limbs.

We needed new gutters, roofing, fascia boards, railings, masonry and patio furniture as well as a new car. The bill was hefty. We are still in the process of getting everything repaired. We called an arborist who confirmed that the remaining tree shard and additional trees are dangerous and need to come down.

Per the instructions from the Village we sent a registered letter to our neighbor with the report. She feels that the trees are “natural” and does not wish to take them down. Last Saturday night, the winds kicked up again and another branch fell through our dining room window, shattering the glass. We pulled the branch out of the dining room and placed it in the street in front of her home. Her insurance company will not pay for the damage and she has done nothing in response to our letter, except to call the police to complain about the branch in front of her home.

We’re hoping the wind and the rain never kick up again … but given the frequency of the “100 year storms” in Scarsdale that’s not likely. Any advice?