Chatham County residents concerned planned community will do away with too many trees

Some people in Chatham County say that's what they love about their community, and they worry a new development could take a lot of the trees away.

"I would say I'm like a lot of people around here. We love trees," said Elaine Chiosso.

Chiosso is with the environmental group Haw River Assembly, which started a petition that calls on the Town of Pittsboro's Board of Commissioners to enact stricter tree preservation regulations.

Chatham Park, a planned community in the area, will cover 7,068 acres. When it is done in about 30 years, it could be home to 60,000 people.

"Chatham Park has proposed their tree protection rules, and we think they're just not good enough," she said. "They're talking about anywhere from 0 percent in the most dense areas to 20 percent of saving the actual existing trees."

For Jan Burger, who lives nearby, it's an emotional issue.

"I used to climb that tree with my daughter and sit under it," he said.

He wants to save as many trees as possible.

"Why are we spending money to try to protect the rainforest in Brazil when we need to be protecting our forest here at home?" Burger said.

"Trees protect water. We sometimes say they are nature's stormwater engineers. They are holding the soil and providing that shade, cooling temperatures. Everything that they good is good for the creeks," said Chiosso.

Preston Development Company declined to do an interview, but sent WRAL News a statement. It says its tree canopy will never fall below 50 percent.

"Chatham Park will provide more environmental protections than any other property along the Haw River," the statement said.

Commissioners are expected to discuss this issue of trees at Chatham Park in their work session March 18.