Tree Program Helps Protect Weho's Native Greenery

As I write this, I’m glancing out a window of my little house in West Hollywood’s Norma Triangle at a majestic old cedar in a nearby yard that towers thirty or forty feet above the homes around it.

Its widespread branches, which stretch across Willey Lane, provide shade for pedestrians and a perch for crows and countless smaller birds. At the same time, it adds graceful greenery, camouflages unsightly power lines and contributes to the special character of our neighborhood.

My neighbor Jim Baughman, a woodworker who knows about these things, identified the tree as a Cedrus deodara, a coniferous evergreen that’s native to high altitude Far East regions, including the Himalayas. Last year, around the corner along Keith Avenue, another Deodar cedar was cut down, leaving barren a large lot that is used each year to sell…Christmas trees. If we were ever to lose the great old cedar on our street, our neighborhood would be sadly diminished.

West Hollywood hopes to spare some of these distinctive trees from the power saw with its Heritage Tree Program, which it’s attempting to energize after a sluggish start.

Approved by the in 2006, the program was established to identify, maintain and protect unique trees and shrubs on public or private property within the city, preserving them for future generations. Yet only six trees on four properties have been designated Heritage Trees, evenly divided between public and private property. The four locations are King’s Road Park at 1000 King’s Road; 947 Harper Ave.; and, with two trees each, 7512 Hampton Ave. and 1007 N. Sierra Bonita Ave.

Why so few?

Steve Campbell, West Hollywood’s manager, Facilities and Field Services, said the low number is “due primarily to a lack of community awareness regarding the program.”

To help change that, he said, the Heritage Tree Program is an item on the 2011 Work Plan of the Public Facilities Commission. The Commission has also approved an updated brochure that will replace the one currently on the city’s website and in print. The city is also considering public service announcements to promote the program and the benefits of trees in general. 

To be considered for Heritage Tree designation, a tree or shrub must be located within West Hollywood, be well kept, have room to grow, be visible to the public, have historical or horticultural significance, and be on the Southern California native tree list or at least 24 inches in diameter.  The list of 16 native trees is available on page 11 of Appendix A in the current Heritage Tree Program online brochure.

Any resident, property owner, or business owner can nominate a tree or shrub for Heritage Tree designation. For nominations to proceed, the property owner must give consent and approval. 

The city provides a number of benefits to the owners of nominated Heritage trees, including recommendations for proper care and maintenance, inspection every four years, consultation regarding proper pruning, and, for Protected Heritage Trees, free pruning every four years.  A “protected” tree differs from a “designated tree” in that it requires city approval for its removal or any act that might damage it.

Campbell hopes West Hollywood residents will look around their neighborhoods and get involved with the Heritage Tree Program if they believe they’ve identified a tree or shrub that might qualify for nomination.

“Heritage trees play a significant role in the growth of a community,” he said. “By being good stewards of our urban forest and promoting the Heritage Tree Program, we can help connect past and present and preserve that connection for future generations.”

The Deodar cedar on our street isn’t on the native species list – but it does appear to meet the 24-inch diameter requirement. Perhaps there’s hope for the old tree yet. 

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