Vienna man mulls Ohio Edison lawsuit

VIENNA — A township man is considering bringing a lawsuit against Ohio Edison for removing trees from his property, but Ohio Edison representatives say the utility company did nothing wrong.

Niles-Vienna Road homeowner John Beard planted nearly 20 trees near his home in hopes that the trees would eventually grow to shield his property from the noise and traffic flow along state Route 82. Fifteen of those trees have been removed, leaving only the stumps to show they ever existed.

According to Beard, representatives of Ohio Edison came to the property and removed the trees without his permission. Beard called the police, filed a report and tried to stop the tree cutting, but Ohio Edison told him they have an easement on the land, he said.

“What we claim and are absolutely certain of is that they do not have an easement for this property. They have an easement that is very general and does not mention our property,” he said.

Ellen Raines, spokeswoman for Ohio Edison, said individuals such as Beard, who buy property near power lines should conduct a thorough search to make sure there are no easements and limitations to what can be planted or built on the property.

“In general, we have a responsibility to maintain any vegetation that is growing around our high voltage power lines,” she said. “There is always a right of way we designate to take care of as we see fit. Some of those right of ways go way back.”

For complete story, see Monday's Vindicator or www.vindy.com.