Several cherry trees in a prominent uptown location were cut down last week, and that has alarmed at least one local resident.

In an e-mail to The Record, Tiffany Wang tells the story of what happened to the cherry trees that were on Fifth Avenue, near its intersection with Belmont Street.

On Aug. 26, Wang, who's lived in the area for two years, saw workers cutting down the trees that appear to be on private property.

"They were the beautiful natural scenery," writes Wang. "They always looked healthy and always blossomed in spring (and were) green in summer. The plants and green make a great living environment for us.

"I really enjoyed the beautiful trees. I can't understand. ... Could the trees be just trimmed? I feel very upset."

Unfortunately for Wang, there's nothing she can do.

Dean Gibson, the city's parks, recreation and culture director, said that while he wasn't aware of the trees being cut down, the rules around tree cutting are simple.

"If it's on private property, there are no bylaws restricting what a property owner can do on his own property," said Gibson. "They are free to cut trees down if it's on their own property."

If the trees are on city property, such as a boulevard, then the city is responsible for those trees and people are subject to penalties if they cut down or even trim the trees.

Jim Hurst, senior planning analyst with the city, said portions of the site where the trees were are scheduled to be redeveloped, with a highrise set to go on a part of that site.

Hurst said that while he didn't know about the particular trees cut down, he could talk about the steps in which developers try to maintain the number of trees on a redevelopment site.

"When a developer looks at a site, they do take into account the number of trees on the site," he said. "What often happens during an assessment of the area is that the building envelope, or where you want to put your building, has trees. For a developer, he usually sees that since there will be so much disturbance to the trees on the site, it's better to cut those down and plant new trees."

Hurst said most developers want to keep the same number of trees, if not add more.

"When you plant new trees, you can control the areas they grow into," said Hurst. "Trees are often an important part of any redevelopment site."

Hurst said he has worked with the developer, Dale Bosa of Blue Sky Properties, who owns the site, and the developer does take seriously the concerns of the neighbours.

"They have been going out and meeting with all the neighbourhoood groups," Hurst said.

That's no consolation for Wang, who still misses those trees.

"The cherry trees blossomed on April 14, 2010, but they were cut to die in August 26, 2010," she wrote.