Treesavers plan to ask the commission to table issue
CITY HALL The highly anticipated public hearing tonight on the pending landmark designation of the Ficus trees in Downtown Santa Monica, an action that could save the trees at the root of the controversial project, could be postponed for a few months.
Jerry Rubin, a peace activist and a leader of the Santa Monica Treesavers, said he plans to ask the Landmarks Commission to table the discussion regarding the Ficus trees because he needs more time to compile his case.
The Santa Monica Treesavers is a group of residents and business owners that oppose a city project that calls for the removal of more than 50 Ficus trees on Second and Fourth streets, a relatively small yet controversial element of the $8.2 million streetscape improvement project.
If Rubin’s request is granted, it could bode well for the Treesavers contingent since both the consultant and city are planning to recommend the commission deny the application after finding through an assessment review that the trees do not meet any of the six criteria required before a designation is granted.
Rubin said he was surprised to see the tree matter on the commission’s November agenda since he only filed the application last month and was under the impression it would not be heard until December at the earliest. The Santa Monican added that he wanted more time to be able to draft a response to the city staff report, which wasn’t made available until the middle of last week.
“We feel the Ficus trees on both streets should be considered as landmarks because there is value to the history of the downtown district,” Rubin said. “It’s not only steel and concrete that add to our history, it’s the natural beauty as well.”
A postponement requested by the applicant is usually granted, according to Landmarks Commissioner Ruthann Lehrer.
The removal and transplantation of the 54 mature Ficus trees account for only $600,000 of the streetscape improvement project, whose scope lies within Second to Fourth streets from Colorado Avenue to Wilshire Boulevard. The aim of the overall project is to beautiful and enhance pedestrian aspects of the two corridors, improving street lighting and adding curb extensions. Each empty Ficus plot would be replaced with two Ginkgo Biloba trees.
The landmarks designation application requests saving a total of 153 trees that lie on both the east and west sides of Second and Fourth streets. The trees on Fourth Street were planted in 1965 and two years later, their partners were planted on Second Street, all located in the city’s Central Business District.
The Treesavers contend the Ficus trees played a vital role in the city government’s pledge to following sustainable practices. In addition to providing shade and beautifying the streets, the trees also mitigate issues with storm water runoff, air pollution and traffic noise, according to the environmental activists.
But both the city staff and PCR Services Corporation, a private consultant for the Landmarks Commission, concluded that the trees do not meet the landmark criteria.
There are five trees landmarked in the city, including a Bay Fig Tree on the grounds of the Fairmont Miramar Hotel and a Eucalyptus tree in the Sunset Park neighborhood. Each of the five trees was found to be an excellent representation of its species, a quality that the downtown Ficus trees lack, the staff report stated.
But there is something unique about this landmarks designation application.
“It’s the first time consideration is given to a whole streetscape of trees as in rather than individual trees,” Lehrer said.
Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on November 12, 2007. Read the original PDF.