Ficus Trees in Santa Monica vs. Lilac Bushes in Tehachapi
Ficus Trees in Santa Monica vs. Lilac Bushes in Tehachapi
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Posted by Blendonw Thu Oct 11, 2007 13:45:59 PDT
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As I was watching the Channel 9 News Monday night I saw a story about several historic ficus trees in Santa Monica, CA which were slated to be either cut down or relocated. Several local environmental interest groups had organized to oppose this action and had succeeded in obtaining a court order that has at least temporarily stayed this decision until all of the facts could be discussed. This seems to stand in sharp contrast with the recent actions of City of Tehachapi as regards the removal of a number of historic lilac bushes from a local historic property on "D" Street.
I found it comforting to know that the democratic process is still alive and well in other places besides Tehachapi. This should give us hope that perhaps time and effort can change the current decision-making process that is now in effect within the Tehachapi city limits. Apparently the City of Santa Monica has at least the small amount of common sense an decency not to blindside it's residents by making spur of the moment decisions without letting the public know what actions are being planned or by giving autonomous decision-making power to code enforcement officials who turn a deaf ear to all interests except for thier own.
The city of Tehachapi may have opened itself up to a lawsuit by removing the lilac bushes without following the proper course of action as outlined by CEQA. This is because these were a part of a historic property. As such, this action should have been reviewed so that adequate mitigation measures could have been taken. It has been noted in the past that while certain rhetoric may be employed to create an image of concern about historic and environmental resources within Tehachapi, the actions of certain city administrators continue to show a different attitude.
While a notable amount of attention has been given to the General Plan for the City of Tehachapi with regard to planned growth, nothing has been done to update the Cultural Resources section. This Section has not been updated in a number of years. It is out of date and ineffective because there are no set policies for addressing the treatment of historic resources within the City of Tehachapi other than loose references to CEQA guidelines; and we can see how CEQA is commonly applied in cases such as the destroyed lilac bushes on "D" Street.
Perhaps the difference between Santa Monica and Tehachapi is that Santa Monica is more progressive, the residents have more money, and they have a greater interest in their community than most Tehachapi residents do. They are not willing to mindlessly give in to political bullying. The City of Santa Monica pays closer attention to what city residents have to say because they are aware of the potential costs if they do not. How long will the City of Tehachapi be allowed to play the role of Land Baron before they are forced to step up and join their neighbors in the 21st century.
In stead of creating an illusion of control in the form of erratic and heavy-handed code enforcement, Tehachapi public officials should create a track record for showing the ability to listen and plan before taking actions that result in more harm than benefit. It Tehachapi truely "Respected it's Past," then the incedent involving the lilac bushes would have been handled differently.
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