Illicit Tree Trimmers Strike Near Billboards

The Sunset Strip “tree bandits” struck early on a recent Saturday morning outside Catherine Hahn’s house.

Jumping out of an unmarked truck, two men climbed up a magnolia tree, power-sawed through the branches and then sped off. The only thing that remained after the 9-minute “hack” job was the trunk and the unsightly stubs of the once leafy shade tree.

It is an increasingly common scenario being played out along West Hollywood’s famed strip as illegal tree trimmers have taken aim at dozens of trees, usually those blocking billboards.

City officials suspect that billboard companies hire the bandits to preserve visibility of advertising spaces that fetch as much as $70,000 per month.

West Hollywood has a love-hate relationship with billboards. It created the Sunset Strip Billboard Awards to recognize their iconic status. But some billboards erected by award-winning companies now stand behind suspiciously low trees.

Though it has long been a problem, officials say, the illegal trimmers have grown increasingly aggressive in recent months, trimming 10 trees in April and, last month, another 20.

Officials concede they can’t prove who is behind the trimming, and say billboard companies have denied any involvement. Attempts to reach some companies were unsuccessful.

David Gardner, the city’s tree expert, eyed a stubby ficus tree in front of a billboard near Hilldale Avenue at a news conference Monday afternoon. Gardner hasn’t trimmed the tree in six years. Illegal operators, he said, do it for him.

“Look around. All of the short trees are in front of billboards, and all of the grown trees aren’t,” said Gardner.

The City Council on Monday night approved a $500 reward for information leading to the arrest of the illegal trimmers. If caught, they could face felony charges. No one has been arrested in connection with the recent crimes.

The problem is not unique to West Hollywood. Tree-cutting battles have often erupted whenever prized vistas are at stake.

The California Department of Transportation files up to 10 lawsuits a year against companies that clear trees and foliage blocking billboards.

And two years ago, Caltrans filed a lawsuit against four San Clemente homeowners who allegedly masqueraded as freeway workers to chop down trees blocking ocean views.

In West Hollywood, officials also pledged to take a hard stand. “Bandit tree trimmers are worse than taggers and will be caught and prosecuted,” said Councilman Steve Martin.

City officials believe the bandits operate during the early morning hours, after the strip’s glaring lights go dim. Pulling up in “bucket” trucks that lift trimmers into the trees, the crews cut a tree to half its height within 15 minutes, then move on.

They usually target the city’s ficus trees, but have trimmed palm and magnolia trees and jacarandas. The targeted trees, trimmed of 90% of their foliage, are easily distinguished from city trees that are left with two-thirds of their foliage when trimmed by city workers.

Officials say the illegally trimmed trees can be vulnerable to disease. And with the city’s recent planting of 1,100 new trees on Santa Monica Boulevard, the problem could get worse.

With billboard space at a premium on the heavily traveled road, city officials said billboard companies have a strong incentive to keep the sight lines clear. Gardner said people are offered as much as $7,000 to illegally trim a tree, a tempting amount for 10 to 15 minutes of work.

When Hahn awoke that Saturday last month to the sound of power saws, she saw two men climb a magnolia and start cutting branches with saws attached to long poles.

Meanwhile, a third man on the ground tossed the branches into the truck. When they left, the tree was stripped of all the branches that once blocked a sign near a Tower Records store.

“These guys knew what they were doing,” she said.