Ladysmith news-budget. [volume] (Ladysmith, Rusk County, Wis.) 1907-1927, 1913-09-26
THE MUNICIPALITY
AND SHADE TREES

The municipality, be it city, town
or village, is given a wide control
over the streets within the corporate
limits and in addition bears heavy
responsibility in this regard. Not in
frequent difficulties arise between the
municipal authorities having the
streets within their charge and the
owner of property facing OH the
streets. Shade trees are constant
cause of conflict. The property owner
may have a fine row of trees along
the street and these trees may ap-
pear to the authorities to be an OBJ
struction to the highway. The owner
objects to their removal. What are
his rights? A shade tree may be III
the way of a projected sidewalk.
limbs of the tree may Overhang the
street or sidewalk in such way rs
to obstruct the public way. May the
authorities remove the limbs or cut
down the entire tree?
The first inquiry that arises in
such cases is as to the legal owner
ship of the land upon which the trees
are situated. Let us suppose that
the trees have been planted on
strip between the sidewalk and the
curb This strip is usually part OF
the land set aside for the use of the
public as a street. A part of it has
not been paved but has been set aside
for parkway, or for future need
should the paved portion of the.
street require widening. Thus the
trees are, technically speaking, within
the street. In perhaps a majority of
cases the owners of the property
adjoining the street own the land in
front of their lots to the center of
the street They may not exercise
such complete control over the por-
ton of their ground beyond the side
walk since that part has been set
aside for the use of the public as
whole in passing. In legal phrase
ology the land owner retains title
tG the certer CT the street, but he
owns it subject to an easement.
That is he must allow all members Of
the public to go and come at will u.s.
ing the way for the normal purposes
OF street. He must allow the mu
nicipality to control it, pave it and
keep it in a condition fit for public
use. The owner may not use his
property beyond the street line in
manner that will in any way interfere
with the passage of the public.
There are few practical uses to which
the owner may put the property be-
yond the street line without interfer-
ing with its use as a highway and
so he comes to regard his holdings as
extending simply to the street line.
In not few cases the municipality
does own the street-has actual legal
title to 1.-THE owner of the adjoin
ing property having no title. Who
owns lie street whether property
owner or municipality, is a question
Of fact in each individual case This
may vary from state to state or even
from town to town or street to street.
1t depends not only on the law OF
the particular state, but upon the eX
act rights which the public was given
when that particular street was ded-
icated to public use, or was opened
by other means.
II the property owner owns the
title to the street he owns the trees
that grow in front of his property
within the street line. But though he
may own the trees this does not
prove that the municipality may not
insist that they be removed. The