Toronto City Council has voted to increase staffing to better enforce the city’s tree protection bylaws after a report was filed by City of Toronto staff that stated only 50 per cent of complaints are currently being investigated.

On Dec. 13, council approved a budget adjustment that will allow City of Toronto Parks, Forestry & Recreation to add six temporary positions for six months to address the unauthorized and unnecessary removal or injury of trees. 

North York residents are familiar with the issue. After a developer clear-cut 40 trees at 103 and 106 Bayview Ridge without a permit in July 2016, locals became frustrated with the long investigation process, which is still currently underway. 

The department will hire five temporary arborist inspectors, and one temporary supervisor of tree protection from January to June of this year to address enforcement issues and the current backlog of complaints. 

A Nov. 16 staff report to the budget committee stated that parks, forestry & recreation staff have said tree violation complaints have intensified over the past several months.

According to the report, the department’s urban forestry branch does not have enough resources to respond to the number of complaints, and the wait times for permit applications have increased.

Ward 25 councillor Jaye Robinson said the current system is not deterring developers from cutting down trees illegally. 

“Instead of playing within the rules and following the process in the tree bylaws, [developers] are simply just cutting trees down and paying the fines,” she said.

Robinson has put forward a number of motions to council, including “increasing the fines, possibly delaying or suspending building permits or stop work orders for the whole site.” 

She said the increase in staffing for 2017 is a step in the right direction toward better enforcement. 

“The city doesn’t have a lot of money to begin with, so it’s a big sign that they are dedicated to increasing the staff complement to tackle this issue.” 

“[There are] residents on Bayview Avenue who are worried about additional trees coming down as a result of [Ontario Municipal Board (OMB)] hearings,” said Robinson. “All the developments on Bayview Avenue are going to the OMB.” 

Robinson is hopeful the city will realize the need for this increase in staff is important.