To Trim or Not to Trim? Tree at Center of Latest Plummer Park Controversy

Call it the “Battle of the Arborists.”

Yet another point of contention has been raised between Protect Plummer Park (the group leading park renovation protests) and the city in the continuing saga over WeHo’s beloved eastside park. This time, at dispute is the treatment of a large ash tree in between Fiesta Hall and the outdoor basketball court.

Protect Plummer Park has sounded the alarm on city plans to significantly trim the tree, something city officials say is necessary to ensure park safety and the tree’s health. Protect Plummer Park says it’s the wrong time of year, could damage or kill it and points out that the city might have a vested interest in its doom (see stalled construction plans).

According to an e-mail exchange between Stephanie Harker, who spearheads Protect Plummer Park efforts, and Kevin Trudeau, a maintenance superintendent with the city, an arborist consulting for the city recently noticed the tree was beginning to show “signs of stress,” and that there were “unnatural voids” beginning to develop in the crown/canopy of the tree.

“This can make the tree more susceptible and more vulnerable to wind damage,” according to Trudeau.

Now, by no means do we fancy ourselves “tree surgeons,” but in layman’s terms, the city is worried a branch is going to crash down on some hapless WeHo’an.

With park patrons in mind, the city wants to do a “crown reduction,” jargon for a fairly serious trimming to improve the stability and health of the tree.

Trudeau points out that while “crown reduction” is not technically “topping” — the removal of the whole top of the tree or large branches and/or trunks — it is a “fairly significant trim (more than normal).” Often “topping” damages the tree, so size reduction is preferred to maintain the aesthetics and structural integrity of a tree without doing damage.

But not so quick, says Protect Plummer Park, who turned to the West Hollywood Tree Preservation Society (WHTPS) for a second opinion. According to Harker, a Preservation Society arborist was “shocked” upon hearing about the city plans, and says it is the “complete wrong time of year to prune any tree and could further damage it and possibly bring about the tree’s early demise.”

Trudeau did not immediately respond for comment.

Much of Protect Plummer Park’s concern over this particular ash tree stems from the city’s previous plan to remove most of the park’s large “old growth” trees while digging to construct an underground parking lot. That lot would have been part of a $41 million makeover. Most contentiously, it would have included the demolishment of the Great Hall-Long Hall buildings. However, the City Council’s renovation plans stalled earlier this year when redevelopment funds were denied from the state.

Most recently, Great Hall-Long Hall received historic designation in Anaheim as the California Historic Resources Commission voted to add it to the National Register of Historic Places. The approval came despite opposition from West Hollywood, which still holds the trump card regarding the park’s future despite the designation.

In total, West Hollywood has approximately 12,500 public trees. It trims the residential ones every four years, and street trees on commercial streets annually or once every two years. Trees requiring additional trimming are pruned under a “service request system.”

Ash species account for 70 percent of urban trees in the United States, and are no longer recommended for planting in the Midwest because of the threat of emerald ash borer (EAB), a destructive wood-boring insect pest, according to a report from Iowa State University.

In WeHo, all public trees are trimmed to International Society of Arboriculture standards (ISA) by a private contractor.

What are those International Society of Arboriculture Standards, you ask?

Well, in the spirit of capitalism, the “society” will share those standards with you for $15 ($20 for non-members).