School District Officials Stumped Over How to Handle Tree Problem

Looking at the towering ficus trees that surround Leland Avenue Elementary School in San Pedro, it’s hard to imagine that these suburban fixtures have ignited such a furor.

But for more than a year, these trees and a dozen more at Point Fermin Elementary School have been the set pieces in a battle that stretches from the crumbling sidewalks along 21st Street to the chambers of Los Angeles City Hall.

“We have to remove the trees for the safety of the children,” said Barbara Dragich, Leland Avenue’s PTA president.

Others say most of the trees can be spared without endangering any students. “We don’t have a problem with removing the dangerous trees. We just don’t want them all removed,” said James Campeau, a San Pedro contractor spearheading efforts to save the trees, some as old as 70 years.

Last spring, the three dozen ficus, ash and magnolia trees that surround the two schools were targeted for removal by the Los Angeles Unified School District because their roots have buckled sidewalks and their branches have cracked and fallen in heavy winds.

Fearing a trip-and-fall accident or worse, school officials received city permission to uproot the trees, replace them with others that would be easier to maintain, and repair the sidewalks. But the plan quickly ran afoul of a handful of San Pedro residents like Campeau who insisted the district could save the trees and still protect the students by attending to the trees in a fashion that would cost less than removing them.

Since then, city and school officials have been searching for a compromise during debates at City Hall permit hearings, school board meetings and a dozen visits to the two campuses by district school officials.

“We’ve spent many months and explored all kinds of alternatives to removal of the trees, and we have come up with nothing,” said Margaret Scholl, director of maintenance for the school district.

“The trees are beautiful there. And it is truly heartbreaking in our urban environment to take down trees,” Scholl said. “But we have to deal with the safety issue, and I don’t know how else we deal with that.”

Neither do many parents whose fears of an accident have grown since last fall, when a preschooler in East Los Angeles was killed by a branch that fell from a tree.

“I wonder how many children have to die before they take out the trees and make the schools safe,” said Carann Sanchez, whose young son plays at Leland Avenue and whose younger daughter will attend the school this fall.

School officials said that so far no serious injury at either school has been caused by a falling branch or the damaged sidewalks.

But they and parents fear the danger is ever present. “This street is like a wind tunnel when the wind kicks up,” said Sanchez, looking down 21st Street, where, she said, tree limbs fall regularly on blustery days.

Beyond the matter of safety, some parents also complain that the school district, gripped by a budget crisis, cannot afford more time or money deciding what to do about the trees.

“We don’t even have the money to keep teachers . . . and they want to spend money on this,” Dragich said.

But Campeau and others, including Gregory Smith of the Point Fermin Homeowners Assn., argue that their efforts will not only save the trees but save the district money.

At Point Fermin school, for example, Campeau said, bids from private contractors show the ash trees can be saved and the sidewalks repaired for $51,000--$20,000 less than the school district’s estimate. And for that price, he said, the trees’ roots will also be pruned and placed inside barriers to prevent sidewalk damage for years to come.

Although district officials have so far stood by their plans, school board member Warren Furutani this week was optimistic about a compromise. After visiting the schools on Wednesday, Furutani said he hopes the district can develop a plan to remove those trees that are obviously a danger, but keep those that can be made safe.

“We’re not going to risk the safety of children, that’s the bottom line,” Furutani told the group. “But I’m here to find out . . . if there is anything that can be done to save at least some of the trees.”