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Vol. 4 – No. 52 ♦
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FR
EE
September 12, 2020 – September 18, 2020
LEANING TOWARD REMOVAL LIMITATIONS
Man Agrees to Revegetate Area He Had Clear-Cut at Proposed Housing Site Woodland Man Directed Woods Cleared Where He Had Planned to Build Homes, But Argued He Created 55-Foot Firebreak After State Said He Didn’t Have Approvals By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
Photo By Andy Milone
Trees along Tavistock Drive in Medford Township.
Conservative Councilman Clashes with Counterparts Over Proposed Law That Would Prohibit Removal of More Than Three Trees Annually, Per Lot, Unless Its an ‘Emergency’ with Plan, Certification Filed with Zoning Officer By Douglas D. Melegari Staff Writer
MEDFORD—A conservative Medford Tow n s h i p Re p u bl ic a n c o u n c i l m a n cl a s h e d l a s t we e k w it h h i s G OP counterparts over a proposed tree ordinance that has purportedly been at least two-years in the making that would limit the number of trees township property owners can remove annually from their parcels, and require, in certain circumstances, the submission and retention of documentation
from a professional certifying that the need for any additional tree removals was warranted due to them being dead, diseased or presenting an imminent danger. Medford Township Councilman Frank Czekay called the proposed regulation that residents would only be permitted to remove th ree t rees per year before having to submit a tree plan to the township zoning officer, and then have to submit documentation to that individual, which certifies that any additional trees
subject to removal are a hazard, (with the township having to hold on to the submissions “pret t y much forever,” according to Township Manager Kathy Burger) “ridiculous.” Mayor Cha rles “Chuck ” Wat son, who recently revived a controversial plan to prohibit the storage of commercial vehicles in residential areas, angering many township commercial operators See REMOVAL/ Page 10
WOODLAND—A dispute over a 3-acre section of woods, which was clear-cut last year by Stanley Worrell, a Woodland Township resident, part of which is designated as a township paper street, and that is also part of development applications he filed with the Pinelands Commission, all while he contended he had created a firebreak, may be nearing somewhat of an end. The Woodland Township Committee, which has been embroiled in controversy over the dispute after Mayor William “Billy” DeGroff and Deputy Mayor Mark Herndon previously admitted to having at least some advance knowledge of Worrell’s plans, and agreed to allow him to retroactively submit a “clearing” application on the municipality’s behalf to the Pinelands Commission, all while questions surfaced as to whether Worrell violated the Pinelands Comprehensive Management Plan, voted on Aug. 26 to approve a plan submitted by Worrell to revegetate the area with 600 pitch pine trees per acre, while maintaining a firebreak along the paper street known as 13th Street. The township committee’s 3-0 decision was made after it spent nearly 40 minutes deliberating the issue in closed session. According to Township Clerk Maryalice Brown, the firebreak can be maintained as long as Worrell places barriers on “13th Street” at both Kossuth Avenue and Lebanon Road to “prohibit vehicular traffic passing through See AGREES/ Page 8
INDEX Business Directory... 12
Job Board.....................14
Marketplace.............. 15
Games..........................14
Local News................. 2
Worship Guide...........11
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