Another North Jersey tree-cutting case ends in big fine but restoration work remains
For the second time in a year, a Kinnelon resident has been slapped with a five-figure fine for illegally clearing dozens of trees on a neighbor’s property.
Vincenzo Polise pleaded guilty in Kinnelon Municipal Court on Dec. 17 to violating the borough’s tree ordinance and was fined $15,000 by Judge Andrew Wubbenhorst. Polise, owner of MVM Realty One LLC, was cited in August 2023 for clearing 3½ acres from a hillside behind the 33 Harrison Road home owned by his company.
A large portion of the clearing extended onto land owned by the Butler Water Co. and situated above the 40-acre Butler Reservoir, a source of drinking water for about 8,000 local residents. A reason for the logging has never been stated publicly but the effort presumably improved views of the reservoir and surrounding woods below Polise’s hilltop property. The citation initially reported 363 trees were removed.
A Kinnelon man faced municipal charges for illegally cutting down dozens of trees behind his hilltop home, pictured here. Some of the trees were on environmentally sensitive land that surrounds the Butler Reservoir.
The culling took place between June and October of 2022, according to Kinnelon Forester John Linson. But Polise wasn’t cited until a neighbor reported the damage the following summer.
In addition to municipal charges from Kinnelon, the state Department of Environmental Protection issued two more citations to Polise in April for violating New Jersey’s Highlands Water Protection and Planning Act after evaluating the clearing. Since the logging, the area has become overgrown with invasive vegetation and species, including spotted lanternflies, a prosecutor said in October.
Restitution hearing scheduled for March
Polise is scheduled to return to court for a restitution hearing in March. Court. DEP officials said he has hired a tree expert and continues to cooperate with the state on a remediation plan for the affected property. His attorney, Alissa Hascup, did not immediately return a call seeking comment on Tuesday.
Polise will plant three trees for each one that was felled, Hascup said in October. The species chosen for the replanting have been approved by the DEP.
Fines for the episode could have exceeded six figures. The borough tree ordinance restricts the removal of specimens with trunks larger than 6 inches in diameter, and violations can cost up to $1,000 per tree. Courts may also impose expenses for replanting, pushing the final penalty even higher.
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Another Kinnelon tree case went viral
Grant Haber appears in Kinnelon Municipal Court to answer charges he hired landscaper to cut down more than 30 trees on his neighbor’s yard allegedly to improve the view from his own property. July 18, 2023.
Polise’s guilty plea comes 10 months after another one-time Kinnelon resident, Grant Haber, was fined $13,000 after pleading guilty to cutting down 32 of his neighbor’s trees, allegedly to improve the backyard view from his own residence.
At the time, prosecutors said reparation costs in that case could surpass $1 million. Haber’s case concluded in October when his neighbor accepted a settlement with Haber’s insurance company. The settlement amount was not disclosed.
Notably, the report of the culling by Polise was not made until Haber’s case made national headlines in the summer of 2023.
Haber sold his home and a neighboring 7-acre property in November of that year. Real estate records show the five-bed, six-bath, 5,000-square-foot Colonial was bought for $1.8 million.
William Westhoven is a local reporter for DailyRecord.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.
Email: wwesthoven@dailyrecord.com Twitter/X: @wwesthoven
This article originally appeared on Morristown Daily Record: NJ man who clear-cut trees above Morris County reservoir pleads guilty
