Nantucket Man Who Chopped Down Neighbor's Trees for Ocean View Says He Was Simply ‘Clearing Out Her Crappy Trees'

Yahoo

15-07-2025

A Nantucket man is defending his actions after his neighbor filed a lawsuit claiming he cut down several of her family's decades-old trees to enhance his ocean view.
Jonathan Jacoby is accused of chopping down 16 of his neighbor's trees and three months later listing his home—highlighting 'sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean.'
'I wasn't trespassing, I was clearing out her crappy trees,' Jacoby told the Boston Globe in a one-line email.
Patricia Belford is suing Jacoby, who claims he chopped down the greenery that grew between her property and Nantucket's Hummock Pond Road, according to the Nantucket Current.
She believes his motive had to do with him listing his property for nearly $10 million. Now, she's seeking more than $1.4 million in damages. She accuses Jacoby of trespassing on her propety at 1 Tautemo Way to cut the trees down.
'The Defendant's actions were calculated to enhance the ocean view from his own residence at 3 Tautemo Way and were carried out with full knowledge that he lacked any legal right to do so,' the lawsuit, obtained by the Nantucket Current, states.
The trees that were chopped were over 30 feet high and decades old and included cedar, cherry and Leyland Cypress, according to the lawsuit.
Jacoby's property, on Tautemo Way in Nantucket, has been on the market for more than 50 days and is listed at $9,975,000.
The four-bedroom, 4.5 bath, nearly 5,000 square foot home was built in 1995.
The listing describes the property as 'located on a high spot in sought-after Cisco. 3 Tautemo Way is a contemporary beach compound, developed and situated to capture the sweeping views of the Atlantic Ocean, Hummock Pond and the 780 acres of conservation land between Hummock Pond and Madeket.'
Now, the home is at the center of controversy as to whether Jacoby had intentions of chopping his neighbor's trees to help enhance his property's description.
The lawsuit alleges that Jacoby illegally entered Belford's property, walked across her driveway to the south-southwest portion of the property, and cut down over 16 mature trees without notice or permission on Feb. 22, 2025.
'The trees at issue were planted by the Belford family in the 1970s and maintained for nearly five decades. Their removal was not only a violation of the Plaintiff's property rights, but also caused lasting damage to the character, value, and privacy of the property,' the suit continued.
Belford says the vegetation acted as a 'natural buffer' between the property and a nearby body of water.
In a police statement, Jacoby's former landscaper, Krasimir Kirilov, said Jacoby admitted to cutting down trees on the neighboring Belford property and had asked him to help clean up the debris, according to the Nantucket Current.
Law enforcement confirmed that Jacoby did not obtain permission to cut down the beloved trees.
'The loss of the trees has significantly diminished the value and character of the Belford Property,' according to the lawsuit. 'The family viewed the trees as part of their home and history. Their removal was deeply distressing to Belford and the Belford family.'
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