Historic 120-year-old tree saved from being chopped down by a London council
A 120-year-old tree has been saved from being felled by a London council on the eleventh hour after a homeowner filed an injunction to stop felling without notice.
North London’s Haringey Council confiscated the tree on Sunday during a morning raid “under the cover of darkness” in an attempt to prevent irate activists from climbing the tree and halting the felling.
About a dozen strong balaclava-clad security team currently patrol the grounds and a huge scaffolding has been erected around it to create a lookout for the guards.
The action was harshly branded after guards were deployed to halt a nearly year-long occupation of the tree by protesters, who hung hammocks and signs in the branches.
The council took possession of the tree earlier this week and went to court to get permission to cut it down, alleging that its deep roots caused subsidence of two nearby houses.
North London’s Haringey Council confiscated the 120-year-old tree in a raid ‘under the cover of darkness’ on Sunday
A guard depicted on the jetty set up for security personnel to use as a lookout
Campaigners say they faced ‘abhorrent’ action from Haringey council after security guards in balaclavas secured the tree in the middle of the night
But resident, Andrew Brenner, filed his warrant in the early hours of Wednesday morning to prevent the authority from cutting down the tree without notifying other parties.
Yesterday’s hearing in Clerkenwell County Court to decide the fate of the old sycamore was adjourned following Mr Brenner’s dramatic intervention.
The order now stands until a follow-up hearing in a few weeks.
The row over the tree started last year, when insurance company Allianz blamed it as the main cause of a property’s subsidence and demanded that the council cut it down and admit liability for £400,000.
Ohna Falby, whose house Allianz says is sinking because of the boom, is growing frustrated that insurers aren’t substantiating her property, which she describes as “the source of all this chaos.”
The 58-year-old resident told MailOnline: ‘These houses are worth millions. We have to look for insurance companies if we want a mortgage to cover insurance on the building but they charge us and know the risk and if they have an event that is insurable they don’t want to do the underpinning so they try alternatives to find.
“At this point, the insurance company is receiving the high premium, but not providing the service you purchased. They’re selling you a product they don’t want to honor and there’s no accountability.”
Upon learning of the council’s plan, Haringey Tree Protestors (HTP) mobilized more than 120 activists to protect the sycamore tree from the council worker’s chainsaws.
Mr. Brenner lives directly behind the tree that insurance company Aviva/Allianz says is causing subsidence in his 1990s home.
However, it was his intervention at yesterday’s hearing that resulted in victory for the protesters.
The council took possession of the tree in the early hours of Sunday morning (March 12) amid disputed claims protesters had prepared to occupy the tree with climbing ropes ahead of the court hearing this week.
HTP activists deny these allegations.
Campaigner, Giovanna Lozzi, said: ‘They’ve tried to justify it by saying we put new things in the tree, but that’s not true.
“The tree hasn’t been physically occupied since the fall.”
A protective wall has been built around the tree with 24-hour guards, fences, scaffolding and a watchtower
Martin Ball, 55, from Tottenham, described the current scene as ‘an obscenity’ and questioned the ‘aggressive’ mansion to stake the tree
Robert Hare, a former Liberal Democrat councilor for Haringey for 20 years and founder of the Haringey Tree Trust, said the area was treated as a ‘criminal ground’
Charles Streeton, a lawyer acting for Mr Brenner, said his actions were due to the council’s siege of the tree at 4.30am on Sunday “under the cover of darkness”.
The concern was not only that they would fell the tree, but “that they would also damage the tree to such an extent that it would have to be felled.”
He also said his client believed the board could “act in a way to damage its case” with the insurers.
Stephen Evans, solicitor for Haringey Council, said Mr Brenner had not indicated to the council until the verdict that he wanted the tree to stay or that he had ‘any problem with the council’s decision to cut it down’.
But Mr Streeton added that Mr Brenner had contacted Haringey Councilor Mike Hakata and was told his email had been sent to the legal teams.
He said the council never sent confirmation to his legal team that he would not cut down the tree, and Mr Brenner didn’t know if the council would wait.
Mr Streeton also said the core of his client’s complaint was that the financial ombudsman who is investigating subsidence issues at Mr Brennan’s home was waiting for Aviva to respond to submit his report.
He said, “Aviva has held up that response and that’s where the delay comes from.”
Mr Brenner’s last-minute action came as a surprise to those protesting the felled tree.
Ms Lozzi, 49, added: ‘I wasn’t expecting it. It came at the very last hour. But I think desperate measures call for desperate actions. We’re all so shocked.’
Mr Evans said the council posted a notice on the tree last April but had been stopped by protesters from cutting it down.
He said a report from the financial ombudsman would look at technical evidence.
He added that if any previous reports have been sought by Mr Brenner and his neighbor against the felling of the tree, ‘we have not seen them. The council’s decision was taken on good grounds.’
Mr Evans also urged Deputy Supreme Court Justice Dan Squires KC to take into account the ‘serious financial inconvenience to the council if the order was not overturned’.
The judge issued a ruling earlier this morning (Friday) stating that the order will remain in effect until a follow-up hearing.
Ms Lozzi said after hearing: ‘We’re not quite there yet, but it’s certainly given us some much-appreciated breathing space.
“When the restraining order was lifted, the judge could have cleared it this morning, which would have meant the council could have cut down the tree today on this grim rainy morning.
“Eventually we may get rid of the tree, but we hope this case will bring up the whole issue. The reality of the climate crisis is still not centralized in our legislation and government.
Mature trees are neglected. People are obsessed with new plantings, but new plantings just aren’t enough. You can’t replace these mature trees.’
It is not yet known whether the guarded fence around the tree will remain.
The level of security around the tree has been criticized by locals, who claim it is a “brutal display of force” by the local government. The photo shows some guards at the site
Oakfield Road is located in Haringey, North London. It has become the center of a battle over a 120-year-old tree
Haringey Council has been approached for comment.
A spokesman for the insurance company Allianz said: ‘This is a complex and ongoing case and we are awaiting the decision of the court.
“Sustainability is a business priority for Allianz and we have not taken decisions lightly.
“We have been diligent in our research to find the best solution to solve the subsidence problem and are working closely with industry experts and the Financial Ombudsman.”
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