if these were my trees, I would do some research and ask for the report from the city forester to see why he deemed your trees hazardous and need to be removed. especially, like you said they only problem they would cause it to fall on your house, wouldn't you want to know if you are threatened by a dangerous situation? i hate to cut down trees too, but if they are dangerous, there is no question. you can always replant. most city foresters, including myself, are definitely pro tree. I do understand your frustration with the whole right-of-way thing. it is confusing. i would think they would be willing, if asked nicely, to give you a copy of the report they wrote up. get a second opion from a certified arborist and see if they are on the same page. trees are important and you do want to make sure the right decision is being made about your trees. good luck and please let us know how this works out.
The major problem I have with this is number one, they're my trees. Number two, the trees are probably close to 100 hundred years old. I can plant new trees but I won't live long enough to see them reach a comparable size as in Colorado, they grow very slowly. Number three, I didn't ask anyone to analyze my trees. Someone decided to take it upon themselves to ask for it. It's none of their business. If it's who I suspect it is, these trees are no danger to them or their property if they fall over right this minute.
As far as the trees being dangerous, I feel like that's my business. In this case I ought to be able to tell the city forester thanks for informing me, I will decide what to do in my own time. Being ordered to remove 2 or 3 trees within 45 days is unfair due to the fact it's very expensive. They shouldn't have the right to do that. Its' also expensive to buy new trees if you want something bigger than a small stick.
Bottom line is they're my trees, my responsibility, if anything happens I'll be paying for the damage, not the city, so why is it any of their business?
I know it's pointless to argue this because it's the law, but I just feel attacked. For the city to say they're protecting me by forcing me to cut down trees, thanks but no thanks. The other thing is if they were to inspect every tree in this area, I'm guessing nearly half the trees would have to come down according to their rules. This is an old area, we have old trees, that's the way it is.