[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of Kingston
(now Town Council of the Municipality of Kingston): Art. I, 5-8-1923,
amended in its entirety 12-14-1970; Art. II, 6-5-1967.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Grass, weeds and other vegetation — See Ch. 107.
[Adopted 5-8-1923; amended in its entirety 12-14-1970]
The owner or owners of any lot or lots of land located in the Borough
of Kingston and fronting or abutting upon any street or public alley along
and through wherein there is or hereafter shall be constructed any public
sewer, in front of or upon which lot there is now or shall hereafter be growing
any tree or trees commonly known as "Carolina poplar," shall, within 10 days
after written or printed notice from the Borough Council so to do, cause to
be cut down and removed any and all such trees and the further growth thereof
prevented.
If any owner or owners of any lot or lots of land in the borough shall fail, neglect or refuse, within the time limit specified in the notice served upon such owner or owners, as provided in § 167-1, to cut down and remove any tree or trees, the Borough Council may cause such tree or trees to be removed and shall collect the cost of such removal, with 10% added, from such owner or owners in default.
[Amended 2-11-1985]
Any person who shall violate any provision of this Article shall, upon
conviction thereof, be punishable by a fine of not more than $300 and costs
of such proceedings or, upon default of payment of such fine and costs, by
imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 30 days.
[Adopted 6-5-1967]
A.
COMMISSION
PERMIT
PERSON
PUBLIC HIGHWAY
SHADE TREE
The following words and phrases, when used in this Article,
shall have the meanings hereby ascribed to them, except in those instances
where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
The Shade Tree Commission of the Borough of Kingston.
Any permit, in writing, as issued by the Secretary of the Shade Tree
Commission.
Any natural person, firm, association, partnership or corporation.
Any street, sidewalk or alley open to the public and shall include
the area between the curb and the sidewalk known as the "tree lawn."
The Secretary of the Shade Tree Commission.
Any tree, shrub or other woody plant on any public highway in the
Borough of Kingston, or that part of any tree, shrub or other woody plant
which extends within the lines of any public highway.
B.
Word usage. In this Article, the singular shall include
the plural and the masculine shall include the feminine.
The Commission shall have exclusive custody and control of the shade
trees in the Borough of Kingston and is authorized to plant, maintain and
protect shade trees on the public highways in the borough.
[Amended 6-3-1996 by Ord. No. 1996-2]
A.
The application for any permit required hereunder shall
be made in writing to the Secretary. It shall specify the particular kind
of work or operation the applicant desires to perform thereunder and shall
state the exact location and the species of any tree affected. It shall be
the duty of the Secretary to submit every such application promptly to the
Commission for approval or disapproval. The permit shall be effective for
such length of time as the Commission shall in each case determine, and such
time shall be indicated on the permit. Any such permit may be revoked at any
time upon proof satisfactory to the Commission that any of the terms or conditions
upon which such permit was issued are or have been violated. The Commission,
in its discretion, may, as a condition precedent to the issuance of the permit,
require the applicant to file a bond satisfactory to the Commission or to
deposit security satisfactory to it to guarantee the compliance by the applicant
with the terms and conditions upon which such permit is issued. Permits may
be issued to public utilities on an annual basis with only oral approval of
the Commission required as to specific trees or specific streets.
B.
At the time a permit is issued for the removal of a tree,
the applicant must post a deposit of $100. The applicant will have one year
from the date of the issuance of the permit to replace the tree that has been
removed. Upon replacement of the tree to the satisfaction of the Commission,
the deposit of $100 will be refunded to the applicant. In the event that the
applicant does not replace the tree within the one-year time period, the $100
will be forfeited to the municipality for the purpose of replacing the tree.
C.
No person shall trim or prune any shade tree in the Municipality
of Kingston until a permit therefore is granted.
[Added 9-8-1998 by Ord. No. 1998-6]
D.
The Shade Tree Commission is to affirmatively facilitate
the development of blighted commercial property within the Municipality and
is authorized to grant such leniencies or waivers as may be necessary to accommodate
such development.
[Added 1-6-2003 by Ord. No. 2002-11]
No person shall plant any shade tree in the Borough of Kingston until
such a permit therefor is granted, such permit to designate where such tree
is to be planted. The Commission may refuse a permit to plant any species
of tree which, in its opinion, is not suited to the location.
All shade trees planted in and among any of the public highways in the
Borough of Kingston shall be set so as to form, as nearly as possible, a straight
and uniform line with the other shade trees growing upon the same highway.
Said trees shall be planted or set from 25 to 30 feet apart, where practicable,
and shall be sound, straight and symmetrical. Every such tree shall be planted
in a pit three feet square filled with good topsoil otherwise enriched and
shall have an open space of ground outside the trunk of said tree with an
area, where practicable, of not less than four feet square for the free entrance
of water and air to the roots thereof. In order to secure uniformity and best
results, all shade trees hereafter planted in or along any of the public highways
in the borough shall be trees known as "Norway maple," "hard maple," "American
elm," "mountain ash," "globe locust," "globe Norway maple," "globe-head elm"
and "Korean mountain ash," except when and where otherwise authorized by the
Commission.
A.
In addition to trimming performed by public utilities,
all shade trees shall be kept trimmed by the owner of the property on or in
front of which they are located:
(1)
So as not to interfere with the proper lighting of public
highways by the streetlights.
(2)
So that the minimum clearance of any public highway of
any overhanging portion thereof shall be 12 feet. The Commission shall have
the authority to designate a higher clearance on any public highway where
heavy traffic or other conditions make it expedient.
B.
If any property owner shall neglect or refuse to trim any shade tree as required by § 167-9, upon notice in writing by the Commission, within the time limit specified in such notice, the Commission may cause such trimming to be done at the expense of such owner, and the entire cost thereof shall be a lien upon said premises, and a claim therefor shall be filed and collected by the Borough Solicitor in the same manner as municipal claims are filed and collected.
C.
Tree maintenance activities.
[Added 9-8-1998 by Ord. No. 1998-6]
(1)
No person may remove, prune, trim or alter a tree without first obtaining a permit under the provisions of § 167-6A of this article.
(2)
All pruning of shade trees within the Municipality of
Kingston shall conform to ANSI A300-1995 Pruning Standards - "Tree, Shrub
and Other Woody Plant Maintenance - Standard Practices." All work must also
conform to the latest revision of the American National Standards Institute
ANSI Z133-1 (Safety Requirements for Pruning, Trimming, Repairing, Maintenance,
Removing Trees and for Cutting Brush). A copy of both standards (ANSI A300-1995
and ANSI Z133-1) is on file in the Municipal Building.
(3)
Any person or entity violating the provisions of this article by performing tree maintenance activities without a permit or in violation of tree maintenance or safety standards (ANSI A300-1995 and ANSI Z133.1) shall, upon conviction before a District Justice, be subject to the penalties set forth in § 167-19 of this article.
D.
Damaged trees.
[Added 9-8-1998 by Ord. No. 1998-6]
(1)
Any tree damage caused by any person or entity is to
be repaired immediately at no expense to and to the satisfaction of the Municipal
Shade Tree Commission. Trees damaged as judged by the Shade Tree Commission
will be appraised to determine the extent and value of the damage. For the
purposes of this article, pruning carried out in violation of the aforementioned
standards shall be categorized as "damage."
(2)
If the shade tree is damaged, the Municipality of Kingston may pursue the individual or entity inflicting such damage for the appraised value of said damage. This remedy is in addition to the penalties for violation set forth in § 167-19 of this article. If the Shade Tree Commission determines that the damage warrants removal, the municipality may take such action and accomplish such removal. In the event of damage or necessary removal, the municipality may pursue the individual or entity causing such damage for the appraised value of the damaged tree in its undamaged condition. In the alternative, at the municipality's option, the municipality may accept replacement trees whose combined diameter is equal to the tree removed. All replacement trees shall be balled and burlapped and of a species approved by the Shade Tree Commission. Replacement trees shall be delivered to the municipality between April 1 and May 15 of the year following the damage and removal.
No person shall, without first obtaining a permit therefor, cut, break,
climb with spurs, injure in any manner or remove any shade tree; or cut down
or interfere in any way with the main roots of any shade tree; or spray any
shade tree with any chemical or insecticide; or place any rope, guy wire,
cable, sign, poster or any other fixture on any shade tree or guard for any
shade tree; or injure, misuse or remove any device placed to protect any shade
tree, except in case of immediate necessity for the protection of life and
property.
No person shall, without first obtaining a permit, place or hereafter
maintain any stone, cement or any other substance which shall impede the passage
of water and air to the roots of any shade tree unless such person shall have
an open space of ground surrounding the trunk of such tree, such space to
be not less than four feet square.
In connection with any building operation or the performance of any
work whatsoever in the borough in the vicinity of any shade tree, before any
work shall be commenced, guards shall be placed at all shade trees which might
be affected by such work so as effectually to prevent injury to them.
No person shall pour salt water, oil or any other material at any place
in such a manner that injury might result to any shade tree.
No person shall, without first having obtained a permit therefor, attach
any electric wire, insulator or any device for the holding of an electric
wire to any shade tree.
Every person having any wire charged with electricity running along
or through a public highway shall securely fasten such wire or place an adequate
shield thereon, so that such wire shall not come into contact with any shade
tree, so as not to injure the same.
Whenever, in order to take down or prune any shade tree in any public
highway or having branches extending over any public highway, it shall be
deemed necessary to remove any wire running through or along such public highway,
the public utility involved shall be notified and shall promptly do the necessary
work to take down or prune the tree.
The Commission may, upon 30 days' notice, require owners of property
to cut and remove dead trees and trees afflicted with the Dutch elm or other
disease which threatens to injure or destroy shade trees in the borough. Upon
failure of any owner to comply with such notice, the borough may cause the
work to be done by the borough and levy and collect all or any portion of
the cost thereof from the owner of the property. The cost of such work shall
be a lien upon the premises from the time of the commencement of the work,
which date shall be fixed by the Borough Engineer and shall be filed with
the Borough Secretary. Any such lien may be collected by action in assumpsit
or by lien filed in the manner provided by law for the filing and collection
of municipal claims.
This Article shall be enforced by the Commission in conjunction with
the Mayor and the borough police.
[Amended 2-11-1985]
Any person who shall violate any provision of this Article shall, upon
conviction thereof, be punishable by a fine of not more than $300 and costs
of such proceedings or, upon default of payment of such fine and costs, by
imprisonment in the county jail for not more than 30 days.
