“Hallelujah!” said Coun. Sheilagh O’Leary, explaining before the vote the development regulation has been under discussion for about six years. She said she and the city’s whole environmental advisory committee had been calling for the change.
Coun. Art Puddister told reporters the holdup was around expected, associated costs.
“Some members of council felt we shouldn’t be forcing people to put a tree on their property, because this was an extra cost — not only for the purchase of the tree, but the installation of the tree and the fee itself — and obviously this is something that’s going to be passed on to the property owner,” he said.
Puddister estimated it could add $500 to $800 onto each, individual property in a residential development.
“As a compromise, we’ve agreed on one tree,” he said, “and the necessary deposits will be there.”
Developers will have to provide cash up front to cover the required trees, getting their money back once they can show trees planted — $150 per lot, needed to acquire building permits. Once they can show a planted tree on a lot, the deposit will be returned. Without a tree, the city will use the deposit money to plant on city property.
Mount Pearl, Paradise and Conception Bay South already have similar requirements in place and, according to a report by staff with the City of St. John’s, there are no reports of trouble with the system.
