The Collards received notice of their civil fine Sept. 21 for illegally pruning protected trees on and off their property on the 500 block of Whiting Woods Road in August. The couple said they were simply following a Glendale fire-abatement notice to cut back overgrown tree branches near their home, and were unaware they needed a city permit.
John Oppenheim also received notice of a $170,000 fine dated the same day for illegally pruning five protected trees on and off his property on the 3300 block of Park Vista Drive, but Howard did not mention his case at the City Council meeting Tuesday.
Oppenheim could not be reached for comment Tuesday night.
A review of possible modifications to the tree ordinance is scheduled to come before the City Council on Dec. 18, but it was clear frustration over mounting media attention on the matter had taken its toll on some of the council members, who demanded an explanation on why the notices were mailed in the first place.
Councilman Frank Quintero insisted city staff members return as soon as possible with a report on who authorized the penalty notices without informing the City Council first.
“I’m talking about a document with a 347,000 number on it,” he said. “Who made that decision?”
But his colleague, Dave Weaver, failed to see the benefit of a public berating of city staff members involved in issuing the fines.
“Did they use common sense? No, they didn’t, but to air it here, is that the best judgment?” Weaver asked.
Judgment of how the fines have been handled has been fodder for Los Angeles-based disc jockeys, who have done their own berating of the City Council and other officials for the length of time it has taken to investigate and address the fines.
