Doomed tree sparked heated debate in boro
Milltown council votes to cut down tree, build park on easement
BY JESSICA SMITH
Staff Writer

"The bottom line is, we are not selling off, or giving off, Leonard Road." - Gloria Bradford mayor

MILLTOWN - A tree grows in Milltown, but nearby residents hardly consider it the tree of heaven.

In fact, the large - and some say unsightly - tree was at the root of an issue that sprouted debate between town officials and residents.

The fate of the controversial tree, on a borough-owned easement behind the 7-Eleven on Ryders Lane, was decided by a Borough Council vote July 23.

"The tree is coming down, and it's going to be replaced, and a park is being put there," Mayor Gloria Bradford said. "It should be a dead issue now."

Though a number of area residents pushed for the tree's removal, calling it an eyesore and a hazard, the issue ran deeper than that. In discussions about the tree, two Harkins Road residents said they would be willing to maintain the property if the borough chose to cede it to them.

"That was [the borough's] idea, not ours," Brian Gebauer, one of the two Harkins Road residents, said. "In my opinion, I was doing them a favor that would be beneficial to both of us."

Bradford confirmed Gebauer's assertion that he never asked to be given the property, but added that it is now a moot point.

"The bottom line is, we are not selling off, or giving off, Leonard Road," Bradford said.

Property owners on Ryders Lane did not like the sound of the possible vacating of the easement, because it would preclude Leonard Road, a "paper road" that now dead-ends in two places, from ever being connected.

Steve Stetzko, one of the four Ryders Lane property owners who potentially would have been affected by the move, said he and other residents there would like to have the opportunity to develop portions of their lots. If Leonard Road cannot be completed, he said, their properties would not be worth nearly as much.

"I don't blame them for trying [to develop their land], but why should it be allowed at the expense of all of the other residents just so they can make more money when they sell their property?" Gebauer asked. "They are strictly trying to do this for financial gain."

Stetzko, a 52-year resident there, said he simply wants to get a return on his investment in the property.

"It never came up until we asked about the tree," said Esther Lonergan, a Harkins Road resident of eight years.

If Leonard Road were finished, it would set a precedent in the town, causing other residents to try to subdivide and build on their properties, according to Lonergan. She said residents on both Harkins Road and Blueberry Drive are against the idea. And if connected, the road would become a shortcut for Ryders Lane motorists, she said.

"I've spoken to many people who are just dead against the idea," said Alex Neno, the other Harkins Road resident who was willing to accept half of the easement.

Councilman Mike Skarzynski, who said he has been active on the issue for the past three years, agreed.

"This would not only be detrimental to the Harkins Road area, it would be devastating on the other side, where the area is already being used as a cut-through from Ryders Lane," Skarzynski said. "I was adamantly against it then, and I'm adamantly against it now."

Councilman John Collins, however, said he sees it differently. If the road were opened, he said, it could serve as an emergency bypass for residents when drivers cut through Milltown because of closings on Route 18 or Ryders Lane.

Collins, who was against ceding the easement to the residents, also supported Stetzko and others on Leonard Road in their desire to at least have the option to build on their properties.

The council voted 4-2 along party lines to have the tree removed, with Collins and Councilman Randy Farkas voting against the resolution.

"They don't live on Leonard, [and] they don't live on Harkins," Lonergan said of Collins and Farkas. "The tree coming down is a safety issue. If one of those branches falls down and hits one of those kids, who is going to be responsible?"

Skarzynski said he received guidance from the borough attorney in drafting the resolution, which became necessary when the town's Shade Tree Commission denied residents' requests to have the tree removed, saying it was alive and healthy.

"The area was clearly overgrown and an eyesore," Skarzynski, who is in charge of the borough's public works department, said. "My biggest complaint from residents … is a problem with overgrown trees. In most cases, my hands are tied due to the absolute power of the Shade Tree Commission."

Skarzynski pointed out that if a resident disagrees with the decision of the Shade Tree Commission, there is no appeal process to challenge it with the elected governing body. This is a problem, he said, because the commission is appointed by the mayor with no input from the council.

"Personally, I believe the Shade Tree Commission should become an advisory committee overseen by the council," Skarzynski said. "If you are unhappy with an elected official, you can vote them out of office, but you can't vote out a commission."

Bradford said although the Shade Tree Commission opposed the removal of the tree, she thinks the situation turned out satisfactorily for all involved, since new trees will be planted in place of the old one to prevent erosion and beautify the area. Also, shrubbery and other landscaping will be left in the hands of the commission, she said.

"They didn't lose anything," Bradford said. "They lose a tree, but they're gaining a park."

Before the vote to remove the tree, Lonergan said she and other residents had been planning to plant trees in honor of Milltown residents who served in Iraq.

Now that plans for the park are in place, Bradford said the tree should come down in a matter of days, and work on the park will begin soon after. Funding for the park will come out of the borough budget, and the public works department will perform all the work involved.

"I don't expect it to be terribly, terribly expensive," Bradford said. "It's not going to be a major park."

The park will house minimal playground equipment, if any, and will consist of landscaping and a couple of benches, along with a walkway to the 7-Eleven.

"I don't know if that's such a good idea for the kids," Collins said, citing the teens who hang out at the 7-Eleven, and the possible problems that could cause for youngsters.

Bradford dismissed Collins' concerns.

"We've never gotten one police report that [the 7-Eleven] is a hangout for teens," she said.