From: "Susan J. Hartley" Sent: Sep 24, 2007 12:15 PM
To: "editor@smdp.com" editor@smdp.com
Subject: Ficus Trees NOT Diseased

FICUS TREES NOT DISEASED
Despite earlier statements to the public that 23 of the 54 ficus trees on 2nd and
4th Street are "diseased", City Forester Walt Warriner and the City of Santa Monica
NO longer make that claim. In conversations and in the official notices posted on
trees, the City's non-specific explanation is: "The criteria for removal included
but were not limited to internal decay, extensive root pruning, poor canopy
structure, damaged canopies from oversized vehicles, DESIGN FACTORS and too large
for relocation." (Emphasis added.)

Walk along 2nd and 4th street and you will see NO signs of any of these critera
being met. Instead, you will see well-kept, magnificent trees, approximately 40
years old, with a lifespan of 150 years, bringing much needed tree canopy coverage
to the downtown area.

The downtown area presently has only 5% tree canopy coverage according to the just
released Sustainable City Progress Report (http://www.smgov.net/epd/scpr/index.htm.
With the City's planned destruction of the 2nd and 4th Street trees, that
inadequate percentage will be drastically lessened.

Santa Monica needs to stop its plan of mass tree destruction and plant more trees,
not destroy healthy, mature trees because of "design factors". Our City is better
than that.

Susan Hartley