I’m writing to commend your neighbor, Nicole Vitto, for speaking out at the City Council meeting against the destruction of the sycamore trees near Atherwood Elementary School.

It’s criminal that the city only notifies the residents who have a tree directly in front of their house about the planned tree removal, as these trees belong to the entire community.

These stately sycamores nearly touch one another over the middle of the street, providing shade, creating oxygen, literally cooling the planet, adding beauty and character to this area that cannot be replaced.

Our city has enacted laws regulating yard maintenance, parking of RVs, etc., to improve our quality of life; why then would they plan the destruction of this beautiful community asset?

I happened to be in Santa Barbara on Sunday and noticed they have gone to extremes in making accommodations to preserve their mature trees. Perhaps we could learn something by the example of our neighbor to the north.

While I do not happen to live on the affected streets and thus received no notice from the city, I walked there today to inspect the “damage.”

Yes, the tree roots have raised the sidewalks and curbs slightly in some cases, but what about thinking green?

Could the curbs and sidewalks be curved gently around the trees, allowing them to grow? Do these small cul-de-sacs serving just five or six homes need sidewalks at all?

Is it necessary that these deadend streets be so wide? Certainly any expense incurred in saving these majestic landmarks would be recovered in increased real estate values.

The city of Simi Valley must start to look at their mature trees as a community asset to be preserved, not as a parasite to be destroyed. I’m no “tree hugger,” just an ordinary citizen, but I believe it’s time we all take to heart the adage “Think globally, act locally.”
T.J. Kirkhuff
Simi Valley