A Revere resident wrote this week that the city is considering requiring approval or a permit before a homeowner can remove a tree on private property, and asked whether anyone had thought about what that means for owners whose insurance company has told them to take a tree down or lose coverage. He tagged Councillor Jeffrey Rosario Turco in the post. A commenter noted that Lynnfield already has a version of the rule: take a tree down and you must plant the same number elsewhere on your lot.
What we could and could not find
We looked for the proposal in the city’s September meeting agendas and did not find a tree ordinance on any posted council agenda this month. That does not mean it does not exist. Revere council items often surface first as a motion by a single councillor, referred to a subcommittee, before any ordinance text is drafted. We have asked Councillor Turco’s office and the city clerk whether a tree removal motion or ordinance has been filed and, if so, where it stands.
The insurance problem is real
The resident’s point deserves an answer whichever way the council goes. Homeowners’ insurers in Massachusetts have been inspecting properties by satellite and drone and sending non-renewal notices over trees that overhang a roof, and the notices typically give a deadline of 30 to 60 days. A permit process that takes longer than that, or a replacement requirement that costs more than the homeowner has, puts the owner between the city and the insurer. Any ordinance would need an exception for a documented insurer demand, or for a dead or hazardous tree certified by an arborist, and the resident is right that the underlying problem belongs at the state level with the Division of Insurance.
Tree canopy is a real issue in Revere, which has some of the lowest canopy coverage and highest summer surface temperatures in Greater Boston. There is a policy case for protecting mature trees. There is also a case that the city should plant them on public land before it regulates them on private land.
We will update this article when the city responds. If you have received an insurer’s tree notice, write to [email protected].