We received some terrific responses to Managing Tree Issues With A City.

Stott Outdoor’s Greg Redeker says you need to be proactive.

How to manage tree issues with a city is going to depend upon many factors, including the city’s attitudes and regulations regarding trees and outdoor advertising.  Things are generally easier if the sign was there first and you approach the city with an attitude of collaborative problem-solving rather than blaming.  Also realize that trees aren’t planted in a vacuum – it’s important to keep abreast of new developments and public works projects near your inventory which may include trees, and try to address any issues at the design stage if possible….In one city where Stott Outdoor Advertising operates a number of displays and transit shelters, a grant-funded “Urban Greening Plan” proposed many new trees and shrubs which had the potential to create problems for us.  Active involvement in the hearings for the Plan resulted in a height limit for shrubs planted near transit shelters, so that views (and advertising revenue to the transit agency) were maintained.  We were also successful in having language added which mentioned the need to protect sight lines to existing signs (both on-premise and off-premise) in the same paragraph as protecting sight distance at intersections.

Out of home lawyer Richard Hamlin says it’s better to ask permission than forgiveness.

In California, unless there is a formal easement, there is generally no right to be seen. We helped an OOH company whose tree-trimming service got overly enthusiastic.  The property owner sued. We ended up negotiating a right to trim the blocking trees for about $5,000. We know of another case in which a court awarded several hundred thousand dollars to a property owner after an OOH company trimmed trees without permission.

Try to include the right to trim obstructing foliage in your lease. If it is someone else’s trees, you may be able to negotiate the right to trim if you show that will make the trees healthier.

This is a situation where it is probably better to ask permission than to beg forgiveness. In California, forgiveness may come at a steep price. Meadow Outdoor deserves kudos for an imaginative solution

An out of home company exec says make your case for tree trimming.

In North Carolina we apply for permits and see where it goes.  We have had some success.  On more than one occasion we sat down with the City and have traded (allow me to remove and we will donate trees on other projects).  We bring local businesses/clients into the discussion.  Indirectly we speak to an unsold location which can become run down which is not the image we want nor does the City.

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