The Mayor and Council of Highland Park have a responsibility to protect the health and well-being of the citizens of Highland Park.

In this capacity, we strongly urge you to take action to prevent the unnecessary and environmentally harmful removal of 179 trees from the Buck Woods site.

The developer, JSM LLC, has been granted a permit for the removal of 179 tees (in addition to the 76 removed last year) for "environmental testing," but experts indicate that this testing can be done in a less destructive manner.

In addition, a recent court filing by JSM states that the developer is planning to remove all 600+ trees from the site and cap the entire property. This could create major problems for the neighborhood and environment, as well as for potential residents of the planned development and the entire borough.

We therefore strongly recommend that the Borough Council immediately revoke the tree removal permit. That action would protect the site and give our local experts and planners time to evaluate all proposals and ensure responsible development.