McMansion critics may have another argument at their disposal: constructing McMansions may often require removing trees.
About 2,000 street trees, or trees near Los Angeles roadways, are removed annually, according to Los Angeles City Hall leaders.
The trees are removed in some cases because of disease or death, but in other instances, they’re taken down because of the construction of so-called McMansions.
Concerned about the loss of trees at the hands of developers, a City Council committee called for a report back on new policies for the removal of street trees…
With some tear-downs, a “double driveway is needed where one used to be sufficient,” she said, resulting in the loss of a tree.
This doesn’t seem like that many trees, particularly since there could be multiple reasons behind the removal of street trees. Yet, losing trees could be another blow dealt by teardown McMansions to neighbors: not only will the new home fill up the lot and look out of place with nearby homes, it will require losing some of the greenery that residents tend to like. This is probably less about nature and more about appearances and quality of life where mature trees on residential properties lend gravitas and pleasant barriers between the street and sidewalks, lawns, and homes.
If the problem is the larger driveways for the new large homes, it would be interesting to see how Los Angeles regulates their width. Is there a ratio or size that could be invoked to fit all kinds of situations?
How about this crazy idea: builders of McMansions, teardowns or otherwise, should spend a little bit more money and cover their properties with decent-sized trees. Neighbors and others may still not like the house but who can argue with a number of new trees?