Some called it “murder.” Others shed tears. A rare, stately copper beech tree was hacked down Tuesday morning to make way for a proposed home on an historic street in Beaver Hills. In its place stood heightened neighborhood tension, and this stump (pictured).
The tree came down just a week after property owner Daniel Stein appeared before the Board of Zoning Appeals with plans to build a new home on his double lot on the corner of Colony Road and Dyer Street. Neighbors came ready to oppose the plan, which was tabled. Neighbors made public their disapproval at the meeting and in an article in the Independent Friday.
The tree (pictured in a photo taken last week) came down Tuesday morning. The corner lot, once an attractive, leafy space, was cleared down to the grass. Throughout the day, neighbors shared dismay and outrage.
An anonymous person responded by posting this sign (pictured) on Stein’s garage.
Barney Bate, a neighbor who pulled up in a car to survey the damage Tuesday afternoon, said he did not condone the message on the sign: “I don’t think that’s very nice.”
But he, like many neighbors, was upset to see the tree go. “I’m very sad about the copper beech tree. It looked like it was about a hundred years old and it gave a distinct character to this corner,” said Bate, who plans to attend the July BZA meeting in protest.
“We hope Mr. Stein recognizes the character of this neighborhood and that he will work with his neighbors.”
Elaine Braffman (pictured), the area’s neighborhood specialist with the city’s Livable City Initiative, wasn’t holding her breath. “He obviously has no sensitivity to the character of this neighborhood and he will do anything to make that buck. Including waking a sleeping giant which is this neighborhood,” she said, visibly irate at a neighborhood management meeting at the Whalley Ave. police substation Tuesday night. “He’s that arrogant that he thinks [zoning approval for house construction] is a done deal.”
Was the tree-removal an embittered response to neighbors’ quoted comments, or an early preparation for his proposed home? Stein (pictured) couldn’t be reached for comment Tuesday to explain the “arboricide.” When approached last week, he declined comment and manuevered his hand in front of his face to avoid being photographed.
Tess Wheelwright contributed to this article.