In Violation:Trees To Be Saved Destroyed at Leland Project

Where Are The Trees?

Trees Under Waltham City Council Order of Conditions to be Preserved by 2 LIFE Health Real Estate at The Leland House Project on Newton Street were destroyed first morning by never revealed 2 Life Builder Dellbrook Construction used for their Newton Opus and Brookline projects and previously sued by both MA District Attorney Maura Healey and the EPA at two separate locations, and a rolling boycott by workers at their Framingham project.

“I want to go on the record about this," said the neighbor coming down their driveway in the dark having witnessed that morning the destruction of trees ordered to be preserved at The Leland House project by 2 LIFE

"About what I saw this morning … when I saw them taking down the trees this morning.. I knew it wasn’t right.”

Another Waltham resident reported, “ I cried when I was on Newton St today. When I saw the trees gone. ”

With the group photo hardly dry, taken the day before showing all involved in the project pointing celebratory shovels into the dirt at The Leland House Project, the unthinkable happened. Around Eight o’clock the very next morning the trees ordered to be preserved were severed off their feet by 2 LIFE builders first thing, destroyed by Dellbrook Construction, a company never revealed by 2 Life Real Estate when asked, in televised meetings by City officials, after giving 2 Life 6 million dollars in CPA funds, tax payer money, the company sued by both Attorney General Maura Healey and the EPA twice, at two different projects in MA. Hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines were levied and collected.

The cross clearing of the entire Leland acreage was first reported that exact night as Eversource workers drew circles and lines in the middle of Newton St yellow flashing lights from their trucks illuminating Newton Street and the workers in the street where absolutely nothing stood behind them. How could this happen ? A totally empty lot with absolutely nothing left standing was behind them, above the fence, not the three towering sentinels standing there for 75 years, trees under Waltham City Council order of conditions to be preserved, in an effort lead by the ward Councilor Joseph LaCava securing that deal for the neighbors when going back to 2 Life CEO for another meeting in concern for the neighbors, changing the deal at the last minute and before the City Council vote to approve it, to protect the trees by an order of conditions placed on 2 Life in a live telecast on local cable tv available or archived on The Waltham Channel’s Facebook page. Gone also was the twelve foot buffer including trees approved at The Zoning Board of Appeals for the condo neighbor with windows right at the property line. Now there was nothing left at that property line but for a trailer for Dellbrook Construction who razed the property all the way to the Senior Center clearly seen now, nothing left standing between Newton St and the center just a large number of heavy equipment construction vehicles, the neighbor who witnessed the trees being destroyed through his window that morning unsure of the name of the heavy equipment vehicle destroying the trees.

And what had been done about the savage heavy equipment destruction of the trees ordered and guaranteed to be preserved by the Waltham City Council? . How do you miss the memo 3 Life and Dellbrook? We look pretty foolish our orders ignored completely.here?
Since The first green fence went up around the property, emails went out to some city councilors concerning being extra careful no mistakes were made by developers asking about should we label the preserved trees right away with signs just to be safe. No answers came.

It was a hard fought effort to save the Three old growth trees standing for 75 years on the Leland House front lawn, a thick canopy of rich green valued by the neighbors complimenting the property for decades, mentioned in meetings leading up to the project being passed, for the country like atmosphere, for the shade provided, adorning the front lawn. Surviving all those winter storms only to be cut down in one action by some guy in a machine it’s unthinkable. Yet it happened here noticed the night of the last concert on the common. The American Legion Band just closing out the summer season.

With nothing but the construction trailer of Dellbrook JKS Construction left. A $50,000 fee for each tree taken down is assessed by the town of Acton when a developer destroys a protected tree. But nothing puts the 75 year old sentinel surviving all those winter storms older and wiser than some .
The fence now up has Delbrook posting all kinds of warnings about trespassing what about their trespass on our trees .
On three towering mature trees from the older set who cannot speak for themselves depending on us for protection. It’s shameful and they might be getting away with it.

2 Life CEO wasn’t answering the phone the next day and the simple question, We gave you 6 million dollars and you couldn’t save three trees?