(Cleveland, OH) - Penalties in Mentor for people who plant, remove or damage trees are set to increase.
A Mentor City Council meeting was held on October 19th, with the discussion beginning September 21st about editing and expanding the city codes regarding the circumstances in which a tree on public land or right-of-ways can reasonably be approved for removal.
Such circumstances now include when a tree is damaged or diseased to the point it is unlikely to survive or severely misrepresents its species, the tree species is reaching the end of its predicted lifespan and it is desirable to replace it with a younger tree, or the tree had been planted in an area where it was unlikely to remain healthy and could damage nearby infrastructure.
The increase in penalties is to deter people from cutting down trees on their own, after a permit request had been denied.
To try and get this issue under control, council approved a new penalty: violators of the city’s tree laws will now face an unclassified misdemeanor charge and up to a $2,000 fine.
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