How tall a tree in a planter can grow, West Van citizens wonder

The saga of trees on private properties continues in West Vancouver as two citizens have written to the West Vancouver council asking clear direction to the community on trees in planters and using trees as hedges on private property. One citizens says he brought to the staff complaints about trees growing in planters that eventually grown long enough to block the views for some neighbours.

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The staff, the citizen told the council, was accommodating to his views but said the maximum height bylaw was ‘silent’ on when it came to trees on planters. “They said there was nothing they could do as the trees in the planters were not permanently attached to the roof top deck, for example screwed down or attached by any cable. I understand that trees in a yard can grow on a property to exceed the maximum structure height limitation for a residential building, but the district should not allow for height violations when citizens place trees in a large planters on their roof,” the citizen wrote.

The citizen said the bylaw should indeed allow for a ‘reasonable’ level of privacy on rooftop decks but also restrict the trees to the specified maximum height of the building. “Why have a maximum building height bylaw if “loopholes” allow citizens to place trees, vegetation, and various structures on their roofs violating the height limit? In the ideal situation, a community functions optimally when ‘consideration of others reign’ but there should be effective bylaws that produce the common good such as safety, height limit and building quality,” he wrote.

He gave an instance where the trees in the planters have exceeded the building height and continue to grow. “This shortfall negates the purpose of having a maximum height restriction for a residential building by allowing trees in large planters on top of buildings to obstruct view corridors. Another worried citizen wrote to the council about the neighbour’s hedge that is growing fast and blocking the views.

“These are fast growing trees with ultimate height going to 100 feet. It’s only been three years and these trees are growing up to the top of the roof of the house. Within the next three years, these trees will become a dense hedge and completely block my view,” the citizen said.

The citizen said he tried talking to the neighbour and even offered to have his own gardener trim the hedges but the neighbour hasn’t responded to his requests to trim the hedge. The citizen said he has talked to several neighbours and they all agree that overgrown trees are blocking the views of the water and the mountains. “Some of them just seem to be lucky to have cooperative and nice neighbours who are willing to give and take.

British Pacific Properties has guidelines about trees not going over 25 metres but these are just guidelines and can’t be enforced,” the citizen wrote. He said the District of West Vancouver council should consider a height limit for hedges, perhaps no more than 10 or 12 feet high, as the district works on its tree bylaw.

“This would provide better privacy for the homeowner but still allow some view and sun for the neighbour. I hope the city can have some bylaw to help the homeowners struggling to preserve the views we paid for and preserve the privacy the other home owners need,” he wrote.

Last month, a West Vancouver home owner warned the district it will be held liable if a tree deemed dangerous by the home owner but not by the district ends up damaging the property. The home owners deemed the tree dangerous but it was a view that wasn’t shared by the district’s arborist, who wouldn’t allow the cutting down of a particular tree the home owners felt was unsafe for them as well as the neighbours.

The tree bylaw is an interim bylaw and the council is waiting for recommendations of a citizen group on how to create a balance between the needs of a property owner and the desire of the community in keeping a healthy urban forest.

The district adopted the bylaw in July 2016 to protect trees on private land from the rapid pace of development in the community and has since appointed a 12-member citizen group to submit their recommendations.

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