I appreciate the school board making an effort to address people’s concerns about the removal of the eight signature trees from the Palm Crest Elementary front lawn.
However, the loss of a 40-foot tall, mature deodar cedar tree and seven palm trees cannot be made up for by any landscaping saplings.
It is a travesty to think that the destruction of these majestic beings can be offset by planting new trees. All trees are not created equal.
The deodar in the center even has a memorial plaque placed there in honor of Jack Hastings, Eagle Scout and two-time La Cañada Mayor who died in 1997. He once campaigned on the promise of stopping people from cutting down trees.
The deodar provides abundant shade and lots of greenery and oxygen. The palm trees are visible from far down the street and are the namesake of the school. One is more than 60-feet tall!
I consider these trees to be sacred objects, and important members of our school community. I hope we can find a way to add a lane to the car line without having to cut them down. Maybe cut new driveways in between the banks of palms and the memorial deodar and make a shorter drop-off lane there. I’d rather cut concrete than kill mature, neighborhood-enhancing trees.
As our city’s Tree Preservation and Protection Guidelines states, “Trees are poems that the Earth writes upon the sky” (Kahlil Gibran).
Just because this deodar is 100 yards from the city’s protected zone, doesn’t mean its life shouldn’t be spared.
Let’s show our kids this Earth Day that we really are putting nature first.
Loretta Hidalgo Whitesides
La Cañada Flintridge
