Peterborough resident says neighbour's tree is damaging their mental health
Councillors debated about the tree for some time
A Peterborough resident claimed their neighbour’s tree has had a major impact on their mental health.
Peterborough City Council’s planning committee met on November 11 to decide whether or not to grant a tree preservation order (TPO) for a magnolia tree outside a resident’s property on Curlew Grove, Stanground.
The owner of the tree applied for a TPO in May, a legal order which protects trees that have significant visual or amenity value.
However, an objection to this was received by the owner’s neighbour who claimed the tree overshadowed a significant section of their front garden and blocked out light.
“The tree is hazardous as the lower branches prevent me from standing upright making it unusable and off limits,” the neighbour wrote.
“My garden is now severely reduced, how can that be right?”
They added: “This is now having a major impact on my mental health having to deal with this.”
It was heard at the meeting that the owner of the tree was an arboriculturalist and a tree officer at a local authority.
The owner argued that the tree “significantly” contributed to the amenity of the close and wanted to preserve its character.
He said the tree was a gift in recognition for his work for the City of Cambridge with trees, and it had become a “cherished part of our home”.
The council’s tree officer did not agree with the neighbour that the tree overshadowed their garden, reduced the garden’s size or was hazardous, and therefore recommended to the planning committee that the TPO was granted.
However, after some debate, councillors voted six to five in favour of going against the officer’s recommendations and refusing the TPO application.
Conservative councillor Wayne Fitzgerald, who voted against granting a TPO, said: “It’s remarkable that a tree officer planted a tree like that in that position.
“I’ve looked at the street scene and it is the only one like that.”
He added: “I think a TPO is wholly inappropriate in this circumstance.”
Green Party councillor Heather Skibsted, who voted in favour of a TPO, said: “I think it is a beautiful tree and the more trees we can have the better.
“We shouldn’t be considering them as ‘in the way’, it is nature. It certainly contributes to the visual amenity of this area.”