This time of year, I hear Joni Mitchell’s song, “It’s coming on Christmas, They’re cutting down the trees, They’re putting up reindeers, And singing songs of joy and peace….”

I walk down Highland Drive and see another incredible 100 year old tree cut down. The canopy was phenomenal. Standing under the tree, I was in the cathedral of joy and peace.

In 2007, an old Queen Anne house was on the chopping block for a new multimillion dollar home with connecting townhouses. The first thing that came...