Tree Removal in Fairview, NJ

Tree removal in Fairview is often a decision for a property owner who may not live on site. Only about 33.2% of the borough's homes are owner-occupied, according to Census estimates for 2020 to 2024, so for many homes the person deciding about a tree may be a landlord rather than the resident.

If that describes you, the useful things are a clear scope, a fixed written quote and a crew that leaves the property clean for the people living there. Our estimates are free and on site. If you are not in town, a tenant can show us the yard and we send you the quote with photos of what we saw.

Fairview's three-tree line

Fairview's tree ordinance is Chapter 22 of the borough code. A tree is regulated once it reaches 30 feet in height or eight inches across, measured six inches above the ground on the downhill side, and the chapter requires a project permit to remove more than three regulated trees within a removal period of 365 consecutive days (§ 22-1.4). The Construction Official handles applications and is to decide within 30 calendar days of a complete application. Double-check the rules with Fairview before removal; we are summarizing the code, not giving legal advice.

What the chapter exempts

Section 22-1.8 lists several exemptions, including emergency removals, utility pruning in the right-of-way, and trees the borough itself decides to remove on or over a public right-of-way. The fee listed in § 22-1.10 is $50 per tree removed, plus a project fee ($200 for a project of half an acre or less) and an escrow, and replacement ratios rise with the size of the tree taken out. For a single tree on one lot, the three-tree threshold may never come into play, but ask the borough rather than assume.

Owners, tenants and access

On rental property we coordinate around the people who live there:

• We agree a work date that the owner shares with tenants in advance
• Cars may need to move out of the driveway or off the curb for the day
• Yards with clotheslines, grills or play equipment get cleared or protected before cutting
• Every log, limb and pile of chips is hauled away before we leave

The written quote spells out each of these so everyone knows the plan before work day.

Between the cemeteries and the cliff

Fairview's name comes from its view of the Hackensack River valley, and Fairview Cemetery and Mount Moriah Cemetery both sit on the western slope of the Palisades. That slope means some lots step down toward the west, with trees above retaining walls or garages. On sloped yards we lower wood in pieces instead of dropping it, and we plan where each piece will be set down before quoting.

Pruning and stumps

Not every problem tree needs to go. Limbs over a roof, gutters or a neighbor's yard can often be cut back, and stumps left from old removals can be ground down so the yard is usable again. Ask about either on the same visit.