Attack of the Killer Trees! Woodland Hills Woman Warns, 'Don't Walk Down This Street'
What would you do if you saw signs posted along an L.A. roadway that read, "Killer trees! Don't walk down this street." Would you continue your stroll or turn and sprint in fear? Darlene Corby of Woodland Hills is considering fashioning and displaying such signs on Lopez Street due to her extreme frustration with the city's refusal to trim or remove the threatening eucalyptus trees in front of her home.
Why does she deem these towering trees deadly? In 2009 a 2-foot thick branch fell and smashed her Ford Focus, according to LA Daily News. Another similar culprit collapsed her car canopy in late August, covering her front yard and deck. Other neighbors on Lopez Street have also requested the removal or, at minimum, pruning of the pesky trees, as four times in the last 18 months, branches have fallen on the street. One branch crushed Corby's neighbor's car.
But the City of Los Angeles maintains its refusal to act on residents' pleas for help despite its responsibility for street tree maintenance and liability for damages caused by the trees. Officials feel that the trees are healthy and say that the city lacks the necessary funding for preventative trimming. Budget cuts sliced the Urban Forestry Division in half, so instead of boasting the usual 200 employees, the department now has less than 100 workers. As a result, the department can only respond to emergencies.
Corby filed suit against the city in small claims court after the City Attorney's Office denied her September 2009 claim for $4,000 - the body shop estimate to repair her car. Though neighbors have been complaining about the trees since 2005, the Office claimed that no prior complaints had been received. In November 2010 Corby accepted $2,000 on the day of the trial; a sum equaling only half of the damages costs. Tree removal fees could total anywhere between a few hundred to a couple of thousand dollars, and Corby is willing to cover half of the cost.
"I just want this tree gone," Corby said. "I have to protect my life and property somehow."
