Fern-spray cypress. Old and choice enough to pay somebody else that knows what to do to put it in a better spot.

I can cut it down myself and saw it off at ground level but then how do I plant something in its spot?

Once cut down, you can work on root removal. A sawzall is wonderful tool for this sort of activity. You do not need to remove the entire root system, only the primary center portion, so just gradually work away at it with the sawzall.

if I want to put something tall and narrow in its place what do you recommend. On either side of it I have a little shrub and on either side of the shrub I have this pencil bush that sort of tall and narrow but what can I put in the middle

You could easily cut it down with a 10" folding pruning saw. You might not necessarily need to remove the stump. You might be able to plant at either side of it. For suggestions on what, show a picture, after you cut it down, of the house -- straight on from about 20' away.

The roots on those aren't super aggressive. Cut it shorter but leave yourself a 4 ft high stick to act as a lever, then dig out the soil to either side of the rootball and cut any lateral roots. Keep yanking and shoving on the trunk as you go and eventually there'll be a big pop and it'll flop over. Physics is your friend.

Since you mentioned the roots I thought you were asking about the possibility of transplanting it. And it's not a typical wild type Hinoki, it's a fern-spray cultivar of that species. It took many years to reach this size, and would not be inexpensive to purchase from a nursery.

thinking about what I could put in its place...

Unlike the ball-on-sticks bush that it there now it would look great at the corner of the house.

I'm not moving two!

Before I indulged in the wanton destruction of your shrub I would at least consider the following:

[1] You could cut it down... but you would be left with a serious root system that would have to be removed before you could plant something else.

[2] But I could not help noticing you already have two "topiary" plants in your garden border... the rather unusually shaped one in front of the porch [?] and the better shaped one at the corner of the home.

[3] You might consider talking to a reputable local arborist who has experience in creating topiaries and turning your overally large shrub into a third topiary. If you get the right arborist your Hinoki Cypress could, almost overnight, become a real asset in your front border.

[4] This shouldn't be any more expensive than having the plant and its roots removed...

[5] And it could provide you with an attractive and creative plant shape that would contribute to the beauty of your front border.

[6] If I were going to remove anything it would be that weird topiary in front of the porch. That one is really one strange ranger... and it contributes nothing to your landscape.

[7] Once your "major shrub" problem is solved... I would strongly consider planting some loose, interesting, and long blooming perennials in and around the shrubbery to give the bed a lush, finished look. Catmint [NOT Catnip], Salvias, Daylilies, Heliopsis are just a few perennials that would soften and enhance that long, narrow border..

[8] If you choose this last option, for God's sake don't plant the perennials in rows... plant them in undulating drifts. Your border isn't a farm... and you don't have to row-crop your plants.

Well, Good Luck !!!

Another direction you could go in ...

yes but if I were to enlarge the walks ..which I have no budget for...I could leave the tree! BTW the tree does look nice at Xmas with lights.

I am letting the others grow into a dome shape. I cut them way back last year. I took a chance.... they seem to have survived in are filling in nicely. I also added the pencil whatever they ares., after pulling out some other overgrown bushes.

what kind of ground cover is that?

"... what kind of ground cover is that?" It is the kind that grows well in your neighborhood/town, is 6" to 8" tall (or can be easily maintained at that height, that is evergreen if possible and deciduous, if not ... and that you like the looks of. Start looking around and I'm sure you will find it. When you do, you can get it identified here or locally.

no more mulching!

That is one big benefit to groundcover.

yes but if I were to enlarge the walks ..which I have no budget for...I could leave the tree!

Enlarging the bed is not going to help the fact that the tree is simply too close to the house.

My thought exactly.

LET GROW TO DOME SHAPE

A much bigger example of sheared blobs perched on long bare sticks is hardly an improvement on the existing ones - you are showing the entire space between the ground and the gutter being occupied by straight, thin brown stems with no structural or bark interest at all.

yes but it looks a heck of a lot better than having that giant ball shaped globe thing blocking the sidewalk. it's one step at a time for us as we don't have the money to put a couple thousand dollars into re-landscaping. I didn't pick this stuff it came with the house.. a lot of the homes have similar stuff in fact some even ask me how I went about cutting the globe thing into the thing with the sticks as you call it because they want to do the same. it is what it is that's why I asked if I go to the trouble of removing that tree what would be appropriate in that area that will stay taller but narrow and not as much depth