Farmer Battles Town Hall Over a Few Pear Trees in His Meadow

Michael Hoogstraaten from Peize calls it absurd that the municipality of Noordenveld refuses to let him plant eighteen pear trees in a meadow next to his farm. The council says no because it does not want trees on the meadow, which is officially designated as "valuable" - trees and shrubs would block the view of the open countryside behind it, according to the municipality.

The case has now reached the Council of State, the country's highest administrative court. In The Hague, Hoogstraaten explained why he finds the council's position ridiculous. After his parents' farmhouse burned down in 2021, he had to cut down eight trees for the rebuild. "The council came five times to check whether that was allowed," he says. "In the end I was permitted to cut the trees, but I was obliged to replant eight."

He immediately thought of restoring an old tradition: an orchard like the one that once stood by the farm. So he planted low-stem fruit trees in the meadow. "They don't grow tall, stand far apart, and have no leaves for half the year," he says. "More than enough sightline."

The municipality of Noordenveld sees it differently. The zoning plan simply does not allow trees, shrubs, or hedges on the meadow. For the same reason, he is not allowed to plant a rhododendron hedge around it either. And the replanting obligation does not disappear - the council wants the trees closer to the farmhouse.

Hoogstraaten is fed up. "Together we are supposed to plant thirty million trees a year to reduce CO2 emissions. Noordenveld even handed out 40,000 euros in subsidies for planting trees along the Woudrustlaan. And I can't plant a few fruit trees?" The trees can only be planted if the council grants a special permit, because the zoning plan does not cover them. He hopes the Council of State will find a way. A ruling is expected within weeks.