FAST FACTS:
*Pubic outcry prompts limits on some development and promotes tree growth *Tree ordinance has new schedule of fines * CVS developer cuts trees, incurs HUGE fine
dennis.turner@wreg.com
(Southaven, MS 2/4/9) From the DeSoto County newsroom Southaven is getting serious about it's environment.
The city is slapping a huge fine on a developer that cut down some huge trees in violation of its agreement with the city.
It's all due to a new "Tree Ordinance".
Bottom line, Southaven leaders are trying to make sure they keep the city looking good, and a nice place to live.
Charles Hurt and his wife moved to Southaven to get away from the noise and crowds of the city. "We're down here because of the environment, yeah. It was a little more country, a little more quiet and a little more serene than living' on top of each other." said Hurt.
More country, more quiet, more serene, and more... TREES.
City leaders have made keeping the city green a top priority. "You don't want it to look like sheets of asphalt and nothing but roads and cement and asphalt and buildings." said Mayor Greg Davis who says he means it too.
Need proof? Check this out: The city is slapping the developer of this new CVS pharmacy, with a 41-thousand dollar fine for cutting down trees in violation of it's development plan.
Boos Development can either write the city a check, or put in 41 grand worth of CITY APPROVED landscaping.
What prompted such a get tough policy from Southaven leaders? Public Opinion. Folks here almost killed plans for the Snowden Farms development until the city agreed to limit fast food businesses and protect trees.
That's why the city's new tree ordinance includes a sliding scale of fines, based on the size and the age of the tree.
The Mayor says it's unfortunate that the very first project in the Snowden Farms development has to be made an example of. "That's what we want to make sure we're doing here that our commercial development doesn't infringe on our residential development and that when we have a development that we do the best we can to preserve the trees that have been here longer than any of us." said Davis.
Because he says it's important that commercial and residential areas can co-exist and that residents can feel good about it. "Trees can be planted, I mean they can be re-done." said Hurt.
They can, but big, old trees are almost impossible to replace. That's why the fines can range up to 20-thousand dollars per tree for the largest ones.
*Pubic outcry prompts limits on some development and promotes tree growth *Tree ordinance has new schedule of fines * CVS developer cuts trees, incurs HUGE fine
dennis.turner@wreg.com
(Southaven, MS 2/4/9) From the DeSoto County newsroom Southaven is getting serious about it's environment.
The city is slapping a huge fine on a developer that cut down some huge trees in violation of its agreement with the city.
It's all due to a new "Tree Ordinance".
Bottom line, Southaven leaders are trying to make sure they keep the city looking good, and a nice place to live.
Charles Hurt and his wife moved to Southaven to get away from the noise and crowds of the city. "We're down here because of the environment, yeah. It was a little more country, a little more quiet and a little more serene than living' on top of each other." said Hurt.
More country, more quiet, more serene, and more... TREES.
City leaders have made keeping the city green a top priority. "You don't want it to look like sheets of asphalt and nothing but roads and cement and asphalt and buildings." said Mayor Greg Davis who says he means it too.
Need proof? Check this out: The city is slapping the developer of this new CVS pharmacy, with a 41-thousand dollar fine for cutting down trees in violation of it's development plan.
Boos Development can either write the city a check, or put in 41 grand worth of CITY APPROVED landscaping.
What prompted such a get tough policy from Southaven leaders? Public Opinion. Folks here almost killed plans for the Snowden Farms development until the city agreed to limit fast food businesses and protect trees.
That's why the city's new tree ordinance includes a sliding scale of fines, based on the size and the age of the tree.
The Mayor says it's unfortunate that the very first project in the Snowden Farms development has to be made an example of. "That's what we want to make sure we're doing here that our commercial development doesn't infringe on our residential development and that when we have a development that we do the best we can to preserve the trees that have been here longer than any of us." said Davis.
Because he says it's important that commercial and residential areas can co-exist and that residents can feel good about it. "Trees can be planted, I mean they can be re-done." said Hurt.
They can, but big, old trees are almost impossible to replace. That's why the fines can range up to 20-thousand dollars per tree for the largest ones.
