After several months of residents raising concerns about the number of trees being removed around town without replanting, Cherry Hill council took the first step toward change by introducing an ordinance on first reading that would amend current regulations to make them more strict.
The ordinance was introduced by title only and as of the March 17 council session, is not available for public access yet. But Council President David Fleisher said it tackles issues such as accountability, expanded liability for noncompliance, establishment of a tree fund, a tree replacement schedule and other issues.
The ordinance must be made available to the public sometime around April 1, 10 days before a public hearing on April 11. Solicitor Howard Long explained that the draft may not be in final form because he and his team are seeking input from council, the planning board and members of the community.
“I can tell you that’s not what the final draft will look like, because we were asked to draft something in a manner that was astic and significant in terms of its protection of the environment,” Long said. “(And) we did that.”
During the meeting’s public comment section, Long explained that in its current form, the ordinance may be the harshest tree replacement proposal in New Jersey. The draft is anticipated to change and be tweaked in the upcoming weeks, with more input.
Another topic of discussion during public comment were complaints by residents about the Wawa on Haddonfield Road. Three of them described how loud trucks that unload at odd hours of the night are, light intrusion from the bright signs and other issues.
In other news:
- Council approved an application for a $10,000 grant to the New Jersey Clean Energy Program that will help develop a community energy plan to attain 100 percent clean energy by 2050.
- Council recognized Eugene E. Mori Jr. for his entrepreneurial spirit, service in the Navy, contributions during the Korean War, efforts made to preserve wetlands and his success in helping to create the horse racing industry in New Jersey.
- The township authorized the purchase of three new dump trucks with snow plows and spreaders.
- Council approved replacement of the HVAC system in the Carman Titelli Community Center
The next council meeting will be on March 28 and available online. Caucus begins at 7 p.m. and the meeting begins at 7:30.
