Residents Still Concerned over Colony Trees

Members of the Chatham Township Environmental Commission went before the Township Committee Thursday night to complain about further damage to the trees and surrounding environment at Colony Pool as a result of the ongoing drainage installation project.

Colony Pool has experienced problems with erosion and drainage. The current project will ensure that storm water is collected and drained in a way that protects the pool and prevents soil from being washed into the shore along the beach area. As a result, the water should appear clearer, though township officials stressed that there was no problem with water quality before the project.

To install the pipes for the drainage and filters included in the project, Township Engineer John Ruschke said it was necessary to take down three large trees. and according to residents, further damage was caused to the roots of other nearby trees as well.

Concerns from Municipal Boards

Kathy Abbott, a township resident and member of the Environmental Commission, read a statement which she said outlined the committee's official position on the project. She read:

"We are concerned that concrete storm sewers were installed to manage the stormwater run-off, rather than the more sustainable aquifer recharge methods currently required of private property owners in Chatham Township. This is particularly troubling for a recreational facility such as Colony Pool, with its many large trees and extensive tree root systems. Were other approaches considered? We would have been liked to be given the opportunity to comment on the plan, as we have with other municipal improvement projects such as the firehouse."

Some of the trenches that were already dug have damaged the roots of one other large tree that appears "fatally damaged," according to Abbott.

Abbott also said the site plan for the project had "systematically undermeasured tree diameters" at Colony Pool. She said that many trees that were listed at 12 or 18 inches that were in excess of 24 inches when measured at 4.5 feet above the ground. One tree, which Abbott said pool members called "the Toy Tree," was marked as 18 inches. "Many residents will remember that this tree was at least a yard wide, not 18 inches," Abbott said.

Another tree near the entrance was marked as 24 inches on the site plan, but Abbott said she measured it as "40-something" inches in diameter.

She also said that there were already signs of erosion on the property, which has "fully exposed the footings of the chain link fence at the rear of the property. ... We would recommend a rain garden at this rear fence as both an aesthetic and technical improvement."

Rushke said a rain garden was not appropriate for Colony Pool. "Frankly a rain garden is more of a best management practice for homeowners," Rushke said. At Colony, "You would need to do something that would more comply with [the state Department of Environmental Protection]'s best management practices."

Stewart Carr, another township resident, spoke to the committee several times throughout the public comments portion to express his displeasure at the project. "It could have been done much, much better," Carr said.

Patricia Collington, who sits on the Environmental Commission and heads their outreach and education programs, echoed Abbott's concerns that the commission had not been included.

"We have representatives, liaisons from the Open Space Committee. They said they heard nothing about this project. We have a liaison on the Planning Board who said they were not aware of anything regarding the trees and this type of infiltration work [and] stormwater management. Our chairman didn't know. So I have to stand up for the committee and say that we keep our eyes and ears open, and it wasn't until Chatham residents came before us, contacted us, and said 'Would you look into this?' [that we found out]," Collington said.

Obligations Under the Law

Rushke said the township was obligated to award the project to the lowest responsible bidder. Rushke said, though, that the contractor, CMS Construction, came to the scene of the project with "dated," "older equipment" (Ruschke would not quantify what "dated" meant), and that "he frankly had limited experience. He did justify when he did the bid that he had some, but clearly this contractor was limited in his experience regarding drainage improvements."

Rushcke said that CMS was "pressed" for time with the project. "That situation did not help at all."

He said, "We mandated that the contractor had to start within 10 days of the reward ... or we would go to the second bidder.

"I think he ran to Home Depot and got a silt fence," Ruschke said.

Ruschke said that the township did end up throwing CMS off the job after the initial complaints were made in the middle of December. The contractor was eventually reinstated, but weather has kept the project on hold until now. CMS is scheduled to resume work Monday, when Ruschke said there would be an inspector onsite to observe. 

The project, Ruschke said, "didn't need full time inspection, but it ended up being that way. It' a relatively straightforward project, it wasn't that complicated. It shouldn't have taken the course that it did."

Lasting Damage to Colony Pool

Janice Coviello, a Chatham Township resident and a columnist for Chatham Patch, brought pictures of some of the damage done to the site of Colony Pool after the December meeting at which she last appeared. She showed pictures of oil leaked from the trucks used by the contractor. "The most leakage of the oil was next to the small children's playground," Coviello said.

"Wouldn't it have been nice to have a survey of the Colony Pool members to see how they felt about the project, and give them a chance to lay out whether they wanted to risk the clarity of the water ... for the destruction of the trees and losing that shade that Colony is known for?" Coviello posed to the committee.

Committee Member Bailey Brower said, "For as many people who say they want shade at Colony, there are probably as many people who say they'd like more sunlight."

"We're not going to micromanage projects," Brower said. "Anything we can do to clear [the water] up, this committee is going to do it. If it requires a few trees coming down, so be it."

Terri McGovern of the Colony Pool Advisory Committee left a written statement with Abbott which voices her "displeasure" that various committees were not involved in the decision to cut down the trees. The statement reads in part, "I have to say that I do not recall anything more than a mention of improving drainage, but never anything in detail as to how this was to be done (and that was one year ago)."

Abbott also said that she had made inquiries and that no one on the Planning Board, the Environmental Commission, the Open Space Committee or the Colony Pool Advisory Committee had seen the site plan before work began.

McGovern's statement also reads, "There may have been alternatives that would have been a better compromise."

Lydia Chambers, the chair of the Planning Board, suggested that the committee voluntarily run all future projects past the Planning Board and the Environmental Commission. Because the project was not a capital project but rather a land use project, the members of these boards were not consulted.

Going Forward

Mayor Nicole Hagner said that she, an arborist, three employees of the Department of Public Works and CMS went on a walk-through of the site on Monday. "I couldn't have said more times to the contractor ... that he needs to ensure that he protects the trees and follows the plans, and that if he doesn't we will stop the work."

Hagner said an inspector would be at Colony Pool starting Monday to ensure that the rest of the project proceeds smoothly and that protective measures will be put in place.

"I know none of us were necessarily pleased with this contractor, and certainly he wasn't necessarily kind to everything over there," Hagner said.

In a Township Committee meeting in December, Committee Member Bill O'Connor said the town needs to remember to replant what has been taken down.

"I think the committee is good at taking them down, but we're not so good about putting up new ones," he said. "The four that came down in the spring are still down, nothing's been replanted there."

Joe Barilla, the former head of the Chatham Township Department of Public Works, said in December that many of the trees at Colony had reached their maximum lifespan. Within the next five years, he said, some of the trees will become top-heavy and branches will begin falling, creating safety hazards.

Chatham Day School Development Could Remove More Trees

Township Administrator Tom Ciccarone said that the committee would discuss some development at Chatham Day School in executive session. That development, he said, would require over 194 trees to be torn down. "That work could commence relatively quickly," Ciccarone said.