Tree Trimming and Removal in Lemont

Tree Removal In Lemont, On The Village’s Clock

Lemont can put the cost of a dead tree on the property itself. Section 8.20.020 of its code says “No person shall knowingly permit any tree or shrub so infested or dead to remain on any lot,” and once the village sends a notice directing removal, the owner has 30 days. After that the village may remove the tree itself at the owner’s expense, and under § 8.20.040 a bill left unpaid for 30 days means “the village’s removal cost shall be a lien upon the underlying parcel.” That lien is why the notice date is the first thing we ask for on a tree removal Lemont job.

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Infested Trees, Development Plans And Parkways In Lemont’s Code

Section 8.20.010 defines “infested” to cover pests the Illinois Department of Agriculture or the USDA deem a nuisance, naming “Asian Longhorn Beetle and Emerald Ash Borer.” Tree preservation sits in a different title: Chapter 17.20 of the Unified Development Ordinance, which § 17.20.020 applies to “all development subject to approval of a site development permit.” For those projects, § 17.20.130 calls for a tree preservation plan with the preliminary plans or plats, an inventory of trees “six inches in diameter breast height (DBH) or larger” measured at 4.5 feet, a survey by “a qualified arborist or landscape architect,” and sign-off by the Village Arborist and the Village Engineer before site development begins.

The same section lets the village “impose a fine based on the caliper inch per damaged or removed tree,” without naming a dollar figure, and it sets replacement for a preserved tree that is damaged or removed: two trees for 8 to 12 inches of caliper, three for 13 to 18, four for 19 to 24 and five for 25 or more, each at least 2.5 inches. We found no permit rule for removing a tree from an existing single-family lot outside development and could not confirm there is none; the village can. If replacements are coming, the Morton Arboretum is a sensible place to start choosing species.

The village’s Public Works parkway tree page says “The homeowner is responsible to maintain all parkway trees adjacent to their property” and that tree debris can go out through the Village Yard Waste Collection Program.

A Quarry Town On The Bluff Above The Des Plaines

Lemont incorporated on June 9, 1873, and reaches into three counties — Cook, DuPage and Will. It sits “on a hillside along the south banks of the Des Plaines River,” where construction of the I&M Canal began in 1837, and by the mid-19th century limestone quarrying had become its main industry; the Old Stone Church, built of limestone in 1861, is the oldest building in the village. A slope tree that loses downhill roots has less holding it up.

Cook County’s 2019 hazard mitigation annex for Lemont records the March 27, 1991 tornado, which took down homes, trees and a 300-foot communications tower, and a separate storm in which “Five trees were blown down across parts of Bluff Road.” It also notes that 16490 New Avenue floods in two inches of rain. Ground that floods that easily stays soft, and soft ground lets a root plate shift.

Our Lemont Work

• Tree and bush removal — dead and ash-borer trees taken down inside the 30-day window when a village notice is in hand
• Trimming and pruning — parkway trees the village page leaves to the adjacent homeowner, and the yard trees behind them
• Stump grinding — hillside lots included
• Storm response, 24 hours a day

Schedule Tree Removal Lemont Owners Can Document

Send a photo and, if the village has written, the notice date; we plan tree removal Lemont jobs around that deadline. Call 708-424-5885 at any hour, or look over the rest of our Cook County service area. Neighboring work: Homer Glen, Romeoville.