Posted on 07/19/2023 12:04:34 PM PDT by nickcarraway
: LA City Controller Kenneth Mejia revealed in a tweet Wednesday that no permit was pulled to trim the now-infamous Ficus trees outside of Universal’s Gate 8.
He added in a thread that “The City of LA’s Urban Forestry Division (UFD) will coordinate w/ StreetsLA’s Investigation & Enforcement Division (IED) to confirm if this case warrants the issuance of an administrative citation or hearing. If issued, the administrative citation fee starts at $250.”
Mejia had previously tweeted that the trees — which had provided shade for picketers during the ongoing strike before they were pruned over the weekend — are LA City managed street trees.
City Controller Kenneth Mejia has vowed to look into the newly pruned ficus trees outside of Universal’s Gate 8, after picketers drew attention to their thinned branches while marching in 90-degree-plus heat. Pine trees on the opposite side of Barham weren’t touched, and neither were a row of pepper trees behind the Universal fence near the production gate.
In a series of Tweets Tuesday, Mejia said his office is investigating what happened to the Ficuses on Burham Boulevard, which he said are “LA City managed street trees.” WGA picketers drew attention to their thinned out ranks on Monday. Universal owned up to trimming them but said in a statement it was done for “safety reasons” though it “has created unintended challenges for demonstrators, that was not our intention.”
“Trees are essential to providing Angelenos with significant environmental and public health benefits, especially during a heatwave,” Mejia said in a tweet. “Public Works’ Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) is responsible for maintaining the City’s 700,000+ trees in the public right-of-way.”
He went on to say in a thread that “code enforcement for street trees (including the pruning or removal of trees without a permit) is the responsibility of the StreetsLA Investigation and Enforcement Division. Violations can result in code enforcement citations.”
Related Stories SAG-AFTRA Strike SAG-AFTRA Strike Photos: Actors Hit The Picket Lines Including Rachel McAdams, Debbie Allen, Susan Sarandon & Bette Midler
How The SAG-AFTRA Strike Could Upend This Year’s Movie Release Schedule & Box Office Separately, the fight over the studio’s construction on Lankershim Boulevard and its impact on the ongoing strike just got even bigger: The WGA and SAG-AFTRA today filed complaints with the National Labor Relations Board over the lack of safe pathways available for union members to picket.
“Within the past six months, [NBCUniversal Media] has interfered with, coerced, and restrained employees in the exercise of their rights under Section 7 of the [National Labor Relations] Act,” the Writers Guild of America, West, said in its filing (read it here).
Said interference includes but is not limited to “interfering with lawful picketing activity by designating as picketing locations areas where the public sidewalks have been covered up with construction fencing, forcing picketers to patrol in busy streets with significant car traffic where two picketers have already been struck by a car and by refusing to provide K-rail barriers to establish pedestrian walkways for picketers to use after Los Angeles Police Department advised the employer weeks ago in the interest of public safety to do so.”
SAG-AFTRA’s complaint reads in part: “On or around Thursday, July 13, 2023, the employer, through its agents and managers, instructed SAG-AFTRA to send its members to picket at the unsafe crowded location, exacerbating the dire public safety situation to interfere with striking members’ right to engage in the protected, concerted activity of picketing and patrolling outside the employer’s premises during a lawful strike.” Read the full filing here.
In response, an NBCUniversal spokesperson released this statement today: “We are aware of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA complaints. We strongly believe that the company has fulfilled our legal obligations under the National Labor Relations Act (NLRA) and we will cooperate with respect to any inquiries by the National Labor Relations Board on this issue. While we understand the timing of our multi-year construction project has created challenges for demonstrators, we continue to work with public agencies to increase access. We support the unions’ rights to demonstrate safely.”
The WGAW filing also cited “the egregious and flagrant nature of the employer’s illegal conduct and the irreparable harm, including the threat of bodily harm, caused by the above-mentioned violations of the Act.”
Erik Pedersen contributed to this report.
It’s not at all clear that the studio had the trees trimmed, or if they did, if if was part of a pre-existing maintenance contract.
This was over on the “back” side of the studio, along Barham near Forest Lawn Drive, and there are probably less than 10 trees along that sidewalk. It’s always drama when there’s labor trouble, but it’s particularly enjoyable to watch the entitled actors and screenwriters warring with the equally horrible studios. It’s like watching your enemies destroy each other!
Well, he’s probably handsy but not handy.
That would burn me up, make me go on strike!
Now I want the same expensive raise AND a promise to not trim that tree....or no deal.
Good thing I saw this article, otherwise I would have continued to forget that there is a strike in Hollywood.
They need a ‘permit’ to trim trees?.............................
= = =
they ‘trim’ little boys and girls w/o a permit.
Trim your Trees without a permit?......NOW you're in trouble buddy!!!
Same here. But, in all fairness, the city I lived in had a good reason. They didn't want "Lake Forest" to turn into "Lake Desert."
They can use umbrellas and write their strike slogans on them.
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