Some neighbors at Saturnia Lakes in Collier County unhappy about tree removal

Homeowners in a Collier County community are furious their HOA is tearing down a beloved part of the community, and it’s taking place without their approval.

We visited Saturnia Lakes in Collier County Friday, where people living there are doing everything they can to save trees in their neighborhood.

They are taking matters into their own hands, parking their cars in front of the trees to prevent crews from removing them. They fear, with these trees gone, their property values will plummet.

Neighbors told us they don’t recognize their own neighborhood.

“It looks like a wasteland,” Dave Schurilla said.

“This is what sets us apart,” Meghan Gandini said.

“Look at that side, pathetic, pitiful side,” Elena Baukney said. “If I could, I would chain myself to the tree.

Baukney didn’t go that far, but she and fellow neighbors jumped into their cars and parked them in front of the trees hoping to stop crews from continuing.

“Let me just bring my truck down there, and maybe we can stop it right at the end of the block,” Gandini said.

“Doing whatever we can to stop them so they have time to rationalize and realize how many people are against this decision,” Schurilla said.

The Saturnia Lakes HOA decided to remove big oaks because the board believes their roots are raising sidewalks and creating drainage problems.

“Removing those trees doesn’t fix any of those problems,” Gandini said.

“They’re just taking the trees, so we’ll still have the problem,” Schurilla said.

Neighbors are worried about property values because of the tree chopping. Back in June 2020 when tree removal was also taking place at Saturnia Lakes, a realtor agreed tree removal in the community was bad for property values.

“They’re an asset to the community,” Gandini said. “It’s what gets people outside of their house.”

“The kids aren’t going to understand why their swing isn’t going to be there,” Schurilla said. “Now, you’re hitting us in the pocket that’s where it counts.”

The neighbors we spoke to hope the board will at least allow them to vote on whether to continue with removing the trees.

We spoke to the HOA president about the concerns from neighbors over the tree removal. He chose not to comment.