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[sadie65]

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me ... ?track=rss


Neighbors blow tops over botched Mulholland tree-trimming



Fourteen pine trees illegally trimmed along Mulholland Highway are located at the top of Beechwood Canyon, beneath the Hollywood sign, near the residence of Tommy and Jeanne Shaw.
Styx guitarist Tommy Shaw and his wife have been ordered to replace pines that were butchered by the couple's crew. 'You cannot prune in order to preserve your view,' city official says.
By Bob Pool, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
August 2, 2008
"Styx made sticks out of our pines!" was the cry that echoed beneath the Hollywood sign once the noisy chain saws and wood chippers were turned off.

A row of stately Aleppo pines planted four decades ago in a historic Mulholland Highway center divider were missing their tops and most of their branches. Nearby residents quickly determined that the pruning had been ordered by Styx guitarist Tommy Shaw and his wife, Jeanne, to improve the view from their hillside home above the trees.


Anger over the botched trim job increased months later when more than half of the 14 hacked-up trees appeared to be dying. A flurry of finger-pointing and name-calling erupted on a local Internet blog as neighbors debated who was to blame, whether the cutting was legal and what should happen next.

Now the city has stepped in to referee the dispute. And in a showdown meeting on the street beneath the withering trees, it was agreed that the Shaws will replace the dying pines with native California sycamores.

Or will they?

City officials say yes, but the Shaws say that maybe something better will be planted when the pine stumps are dug up -- something that doesn't grow too tall.

"We're looking for a good replacement," Jeanne Shaw said. "The one thing we care about is when it is finished it looks good. People from the whole world come up here to look at the Hollywood sign."

Shaw said she and her husband were shocked when they saw the results of the pruning. She said the trees had been topped off several times in the past when they began to obscure the couple's panoramic view of the Los Angeles Basin. The pair figured they were allowed to prune because of a 1973 city tree-trimming permit that they said came with the property they bought a dozen years ago.

But Jeanne Shaw's former tree trimmer retired and she hired a new one for the latest pruning. "It was a big disaster. Our view of it was the worst: We looked right down at it," she said.

Later, a neighbor hired another trimmer for a median-strip pine that the Shaws' work crew had overlooked. "That tree was stripped. It was horrifying -- looked like a totem pole. People thought we did it, but we didn't," she said.

Cara Rule, president of the Hollywoodland Homeowners Assn., said the woman who ordered the cutting of the last tree will be responsible for replacing it. Actually, that woman and the Shaws will be required by the city to replace the pines on a two-for-one basis. The extra trees will be planted on city parkland, Rule said.

Among those meeting on the street was nearby resident Jean Clyde Mason. She was one of the people who helped plant the pines about 40 years ago to beautify the median, Rule said.

The median divider, built by Italian artisans when the old Hollywoodland subdivision was planned in the 1920s, separates Mulholland's elevated westbound traffic from the lower eastbound lane. The stonework has been designated a Los Angeles cultural landmark.

Rule said the sycamore was the slight winner when the neighborhood was polled to learn residents' preference for replacement trees.

"We're going back and forth on whether it should be the native sycamore or a bottle tree," which is Australian but is approved as a street tree by the city, she said.

Whatever is planted should be low-maintenance and have roots that will not damage the stone wall and street pavement, Rule said. Nearby residents will be asked to water the new trees for at least two years.

Neighbor Lee Dembart, who lives a few houses away from the chain-sawed pines, said he favors an evergreen tree. Sycamores "look fine in the summer, but they are barren in the winter, which doesn't look good," he said.

Dembart also questioned the city's agreement to the planting of 36-inch box trees. "The Shaws should be required to replace the trees they destroyed with trees of roughly the same size as the ones that were there."

City officials said sycamores grow large but are manageable.

The city currently prunes its street trees every nine years. Any other trimming is up to residents.

But any future pruning of trees in the Mulholland median divider will require a current permit that is valid for just 30 days, said the city's Assistant Chief Forester Ronald Lorenzen, who took part in the meeting with homeowners. And a complaint over an obscured view won't cut it with L.A.'s Urban Forestry Division.

"The city does not have a view ordinance," Lorenzen said. "You cannot prune in order to preserve your view."

bob.pool@latimes.com

[classicstyxfan]

There's just gotta be a "Sticks" joke to be told in reagards to this, but I am drawing a blank.

Perhaps the "original trimmer" could be in there too.....

[bugsymalone]

Neighbor Lee Dembart, who lives a few houses away from the chain-sawed pines, said he favors an evergreen tree. Sycamores "look fine in the summer, but they are barren in the winter, which doesn't look good," he said.

Most shocking fact of all from this. They have winter in Southern California???

Perhaps the "original trimmer" could be in there too.....

(I am certain there will be a way to blame that original member of the Pine-Tree-To-Sticks Trimming Team. )


Bugsy

[shaka]

I guess the issue of whether Tommy Shaw has money should be forever put to rest. You do not live in that neighborhood unless you are very comfortable.

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

[Zan]

I guess the issue of whether Tommy Shaw has money should be forever put to rest. You do not live in that neighborhood unless you are very comfortable.

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

His house has been featured on E! Celebrity Homes. Hardly a run-down shack.

[LordofDaRing]

"Anger over the botched trim job increased months later when more than half of the 14 hacked-up trees appeared to be dying. A flurry of finger-pointing and name-calling erupted on a local Internet blog as neighbors debated who was to blame, whether the cutting was legal and what should happen next."
It mustabeen that long haired hippie from that Rock band..

Actually I think TS was tired of being that Man in the Wilderness (Next bad pun)

[shaka]

I think it would be hilarious to read that blog.

[tommyluvr2]

Well it looks like Styx will be out touring for a few more years to pay for this little mix up.

Denise

[Tanirocker]

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

I think it was very irresponsible of the LA Times to print that information. I have to wonder if they have forgotten what happened to Rebecca Schaeffer.

[Rockwriter]

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

I think it was very irresponsible of the LA Times to print that information. I have to wonder if they have forgotten what happened to Rebecca Schaeffer.

It was an interesting article, and actually kinda funny, but I agree they should have printed it without making such a specific landmark reference. It would have been the exact same article with the exact same impact without drawing any maps to Tommy's door step. I hope he let them know about it privately.


Sterling

[Toph]

I guess the issue of whether Tommy Shaw has money should be forever put to rest. You do not live in that neighborhood unless you are very comfortable.

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

Stalker alert!

[tommyluvr2]

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

I think it was very irresponsible of the LA Times to print that information. I have to wonder if they have forgotten what happened to Rebecca Schaeffer.

I agree with that totally, I know they are reporting the news, but they could have been a little more careful with specific detail of their house.

Denise

[chowhall]

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

I think it was very irresponsible of the LA Times to print that information. I have to wonder if they have forgotten what happened to Rebecca Schaeffer.

I agree with that totally, I know they are reporting the news, but they could have been a little more careful with specific detail of their house.

Denise

I haven't been to Hollywood lately, but don't they still sell Maps to the Stars homes? If someone really wants to figure out where aging rock stars live,I bet it's not that hard.

[Rockwriter]

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

I think it was very irresponsible of the LA Times to print that information. I have to wonder if they have forgotten what happened to Rebecca Schaeffer.

I agree with that totally, I know they are reporting the news, but they could have been a little more careful with specific detail of their house.

Denise

I haven't been to Hollywood lately, but don't they still sell Maps to the Stars homes? If someone really wants to figure out where aging rock stars live,I bet it's not that hard.

That's absolutely true, and I personally think that ought to be against the law. It makes no sense . . . on the one hand, pass anti-stalking laws, largely in response to the murder - on her own doorstep - of 'My Sister Sam' star Rebecca Schaeffer; on the other hand, allow people to sell directions to famous people's homes. Hmmmm . . . anyone else see a contradiction here?


Sterling

[styxfanNH]

In the past, Tommy has posted pictures of him in his yard with the Hollywood sign in it. So my guess is that he is not to worried about it.

[Tanirocker]

In the past, Tommy has posted pictures of him in his yard with the Hollywood sign in it. So my guess is that he is not to worried about it.

Actually, having the Hollywood sign in the background doesn't give much away. I have a photo of me in the parking lot at work and the Hollywood sign is in the background. It's far above the residences, and on a clear day it's visible from a large part of LA County.

As for the maps of the stars' homes, they are notorious for being outdated and/or just plain wrong. Also, most of the houses you can find with maps and tours are in Beverly Hills, which has private security, and they are far from the road, behind gates.

I wouldn't really be concerned if Tommy hadn't had to deal with stalker types in the past. People have gone to great lengths to get personal information, and there are those who have exhibited scary levels of hatred and obsession towards him.

I'm glad he has a big dog!

[elmotano]

I recall back in the early 80's, hearing about more then a few instances of women camping out at Tommy's ranch in Michigan. I am sure those same people would have an easier time finding his home now, with technology.

[shaka]

I guess the issue of whether Tommy Shaw has money should be forever put to rest. You do not live in that neighborhood unless you are very comfortable.

I had an idea of where Tommy lived before but with the info given and the help of Google maps it's really not that hard to figure out within a few houses where he lives.

Stalker alert!

Not really. I was just making an observation. If I wanted to know exactly where Tommy lives, or anyone for that matter, there are much better ways.