Sunday, November 9, 2008

The Pendleton Tree saga

There is a tree outside the Diner by the front door. The city planted it there about 14 years ago. They planted a lot of trees on Main Street. They were cute little trees and were very lovely in the fall. But like trees sometimes do, they grew....and grew and grew. Now most of them are 30 to 40 feet tall. And they attract birds...lots and lots of birds. The business owners did not want the trees, but the CITY planted them anyway. The trees have become a giant nuisance. And now the City has decided that the trees are the property owners responsibility. The trees are uplifting the sidewalks and the afore mentioned birds are covering the ground with bird droppings. Pounds of bird droppings. Since the City informed the property owners that the trees were their responsibility, my tree was trimmed...from 35 feet to a more manageable 12 feet. Needless to say, that left very few branches where birds could roost. And my sidewalk in front of the Diner is clean and shiny which my customers love.Evidently the city likes bird poop covered sidewalks because they sent the code enforcement officer to write me a citation..a CRIMINAL citation. They charged me with criminal mischief which carries a year in jail and a $6250 fine if convicted, even though they are the ones who told us to trim the trees in the first place. They said the trim job should have left more than eleven leaves on the tree. They should have been more specific in the original letter. In any case, My customers love me, the City Manager hates me and my attorney says we have the law on our side (not to mention common sense). I'll keep you posted.