Should I Grab It ?

This afternoon on my way home from work I came across a town road crew cleaning up a downed red oak on piece of property that had posted signs all over it. The tree was at least 50 feet from the road so it wasnt a hazzard to any passer bys. I stopped to check it out and I asked the guy who seemed to be in charge if they were gonna take it with them. He said no and that it was mine if I wanted it ,so I said are you sure its ok for me to take a tree off private property without the owners permission? He replied that anything the town cuts is open to the public even if its on private property, Im not so sure. Opinions?

Sounds kinda iffy to me. Even if its abandoned, someone owns it and someone might not want you on their land. But it may be the the homeowner had it removed, I dont know. Stop by later and see if theres anyone living there to ask (assuming there is a house on this land)

But generally, a piece of land plastered with posted signs is a red flag. Wood isnt in short supply, if you cant get this there will be more in the future

I suppose that could be true in some places but it is doubtful. For sure here one would not want to do it. Even if the county cuts a tree in the right-of-way, we still own that property and not the county. The county only had the right of way and not ownership.

Keep it simple and safe. Ask the land owner before taking any wood.

Yeah, I'd play it safe and ask the homeowner if it is alright by them. Not only the safe thing to do, but the right thing to do.....
chances are, they'll let you have it. And you'll feel better for asking...

Thanks for the advice. The closest house is a mega mansion that probably only gets used in the summer and some weekends. In fact I would bet that the tree is on a separate lot. But the area is pretty exclusive (Paul McCartney has a place nearby) so a guy in a beat up truck with a chainsaw would probably attract some attention. Its to bad because the trunk is about 20' x 24" and nice and staight. The fiskars would tear it up.

The town shouldn't be cutting on private property. They should cut up to the edge of the right of way and the rest is up to the homeowner. He had no right to say that.

Thats what I was thinking. I was thinking that maybe its land that that town purchased through the community preservation fund and they havent changed the signs yet. Its in Ammagansett near fresh pond and the town owns most of the undeveloped land back there. If I had my saw with me at the time I definitely would have filled the truck but I had to go home first and sharpen my chain so I had time to think on it. I will keep passing by and see if the owner of the nearest house is around and get the scoop.

I would take it on his say so. If the property owner should approach you, tell him you asked the highway dept and was told it was ok. Tell him you are sorry for troubling him and be on your way.He may tell you to finish taking it.

You need to know what distance the right-of-way covers for that town, county, city or state. It can vary for each juristiction. If the town crew was cutting it then most likely you can take it because they can't cut on private land unless there is an innament threat to town property. But I'm not an attorney and I don't play one on T.V. and I did not stay in a Holiday Inn Express last night so please check with your town officials before proceeding withn the extraction.

Don't know if this helps but, What I do down here is contact the police first! tell them what your doing and you have permission from the town, let them deal with it and talk to the property owner. I deal with that a lot in a small town down here. It's not worth going to jail over I have been "almost" put in the pokey because of second hand information twice. Good luck!

If its CPF land than that's different. You said that maybe they haven't changed the signs yet. Is it posted?

When I worked for the country township here where I live, we could go into anyones property up to 100 feet and take something out and or cut a water way back to the way it was and a few other things. We did it a few times to take a tree out that could cause problems. BUT here the tree STILL belonged to the land owner and we need to ask before we cut. If I was you I would ask FIRST.

I cant really think of any other reason they would mess with it except if it was a bad hang or someting else dangerous. Im just gonna leave it . Its kinda hard to see from the road so I doubt its going anywhere.

Since he co-wrote 'Norwegian Wood,' he may have dibs; I would check with the owner.

Posted signs should have been your first clue.
Timber theft is not taken lightly in this part of NY.
Town rightaway in this area is 25' to the center of the road.
I don't think it is much bigger in Springs NY.
Best find the property owner.

If the town road crew had told you that they didnt know if you could take the tree but that you had to ask the landowner, I would think the statement was correct. But saying you COULD take it does not sound right. Here the town owns 25' from the center of the road. And thats it. I would be suspicious of their statement being correct.

That happens all the time around here. The road crew leaves it along the road and it is first come, first served. No permits needed because it came off private land

The posted sign was what made me think twice even though a town road crew was doing the work.

Put on a bright reflective vest or whatever the highway department guys were wearing. No one will question you then . Just coming to finish the job