Residents of the villas were left fuming when they arrived home on Thursday afternoon to find the trees had been removed from one side of the driveway avenue as one enters the complex.

The award-winning development in Temperley Street comprises four separate areas, Grevillea, Melaleuca, Tristania, and Sequoia, each with its own body corporate, and each represented on a joint consultative committee.

After a vote last week on whether or not the trees - which had caused some damage from roots lifting pavers and bitumen - should be removed was deadlocked between the four sections, residents were hoping another vote would be put to each of the 109 villa owners.

Instead the Sequoia body corporate, which technically owns the land in question and had liability concerns, entered into a private agreement with Tristania, which the trees bordered, resulting in their removal.

''They've basically destroyed much of the beautiful entrance character,'' Bob Banens, a resident of Melaleuca, said after returning home ''stunned'' to find the trees

gone. I am sure within each of the complexes there are people who are pro and anti-trees, but for most of us we have decided to live in The Gardens because it is 'The Gardens'; it has lots of lovely trees and shrubs and that's what makes it attractive.''

Mr Banens said reasonable alternatives had not been considered, with flawed arguments made to justify their removal.

''The concern has been raised about those trees - that they'll be upsetting foundations of villas and all that sort of stuff - is alarmist and misguided,'' he said.

''We've had endless arborists come in and they all say put root barriers in. No issue, they're not big trees, they're pretty much mature now.

''It's almost like they keep on going back and getting another one and eventually they will find one [arborist] that supports their argument.''

Robert Brettell, a member of the Melaleuca and joint consultative committees, was disappointed a solution could not be agreed, since all owners had been contributing to the upkeep of the driveway.

''At the last meeting, effectively Sequoia said, 'They're our property, we're going to remove them','' he said.

''Legally they may have been entitled to, but according to the 2006 title deed that we all signed, it was meant to be a joint decision, because we'd all been paying for the maintenance and upkeep of it for the last 13 years,'' Mr Brettell said.

The ''high-handed'' action has raised tensions among residents and is bound to pit body corporate groups against each other, with the issue likely to be raised of whether others will continue to pay for the upkeep of the entry.

Although the trees have now gone, it may not be the end, with Grevillea due to meet at the end of the month on what to do with the trees on their land on the other side of the drive.

''Who knows what they're going to do. This may force Grevillea to take out their trees just so it matches on both sides,'' Mr Brettell said. ''It's a long way from over.''