AGED OAK DRAWS LAST-MINUTE SUPPORT BEFORE BIG MOVE OLD GLORY TO BE UPROOTED TO MAKE ROOM FOR HIGHWAY.Byline: Nicholas Grudin Staff Writer STEVENSON RANCH Stevenson Ranch, California (in the 91381 ZIP Code) is a Los Angeles County, USA, unincorporated community west of Santa Clarita a few miles south of Six Flags Magic Mountain amusement park. The Stevenson Ranch fountain was redone in 2007. - The Natural Resources Defense Council The Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) is a New York City-based, non-profit non-partisan international environmental advocacy group, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Beijing. Founded in 1970, NRDC today has 1. - with a membership list that includes Robert Redford Noun 1. Robert Redford - United States actor and filmmaker who starred with Paul Newman in several films (born in 1936) Charles Robert Redford, Redford and Robert Kennedy Jr. - joined the fight Monday to save the ancient oak tree known as Old Glory from being uprooted for a four-lane highway west of Santa Clarita Santa Clarita, city (1990 pop. 110,642), Los Angeles co., S Calif., suburb 30 mi (48 km) NW of downtown Los Angeles, on the Santa Clara River; inc. 1987. Situated in the Santa Clara valley and nearby canyons, Santa Clarita includes the former towns of Canyon Country, . Several Hollywood heavyweights have written and called developers John Laing For John Laing, the 15th century bishop of Glasgow, see John Laing (bishop) John Laing plc is a British developer and operator of privately financed, public sector infrastructure projects such as roads, railways, hospitals and schools through Public-Private Partnership (PPP) and Homes and Lennar Corp., respectively the company transplanting the oak tree and the developer that will eventually build the 21,000-home Newhall Ranch, which the highway will serve. ``This tree has become an important symbol - it is bigger than all the players involved,'' said John Quigley John B. Quigley is a professor of law at the Moritz College of Law at the Ohio State University, where he is the Presidents' Club Professor of Law. In 1995 he was recipient of The Ohio State University Distinguished Scholar Award. , the man who made Old Glory famous last year when he camped in its limbs for 10 weeks. ``If Lennar does not support saving Old Glory, there will be a lot of people who will mobilize to fight Newhall Ranch who would not have otherwise done so,'' Quigley said, standing outside a chain-link fence that now surrounds the oak. Officials from Lennar Corp. were not available for comment Monday, and Laing Homes officials refused to comment. Initially, Laing Homes planned to chop down Verb 1. chop down - cut down; "George chopped down the cherry tree" fell, strike down, cut down, drop - cause to fall by or as if by delivering a blow; "strike down a tree"; "Lightning struck down the hikers" the centuries-old valley oak, but the developer agreed to relocate the tree instead of destroying it after Quigley's demonstration rallied strong public support. However, Quigley and other environmentalists, including the Santa Clarita Organization for Planning the Environment, contend that relocating the oak could kill it. Now the NRDC NRDC Natural Resources Defense Council NRDC National Research and Development Centre (Institute of Education, London) NRDC National Realty & Development Corp. has joined the push, and a list of actors and entertainment executives has voiced support for leaving the tree standing. ``The NRDC has sanctioned that the executive forum be activated to get involved in this issue, to try to save Old Glory,'' said Linda Stewart, a member of the group's executive forum. NRDC activists include actress Julia Louis-Dreyfus This article is about the American actress. For the French actress, see Julie Dreyfus. Julia Scarlett Elizabeth Louis-Dreyfus[1] (born January 13, 1961) is an Emmy, Golden Globe, and SAG Award-winning American actress and comedian who gained ; movie producer Lawrence Bender; Laurie David, wife of producer Larry David; and actor Peter Horton. According to a Laing Homes Web site dedicated to the tree's relocation plans, www.picocanyonoaktree.com, the oak is now prepared for the definitive relocation preparation of cutting the bottom roots, which could begin as soon as tomorrow, but has not yet been started. Quigley would like to see that process halted in order to allow more time for debate. ``Our bottom line is that we appreciate their effort to save the tree, but we think there is a better solution,'' Quigley said. According to Quigley, more support is expected to build in the coming weeks. ``Our goal is for John Laing Homes to hold off through the holidays on cutting the roots. There has been a groundswell ground·swell n. 1. A sudden gathering of force, as of public opinion: a groundswell of antiwar sentiment. 2. of support to reopen the issue, especially considering the concerns over the safety of the road,'' Quigley said. Nicholas Grudin, (661) 257-5255 nicholas.grudin(at)dailynews.com CAPTION(S): 4 photos Photo: (1 -- color) Activist John Quigley, who camped out in Old Glory for 10 weeks last year, stands by the tree, which is scheduled to be relocated. His protest saved the tree from being destroyed. (2) Construction equipment is ready to aid in the moving of the old oak, which opponents say could kill the tree. (3 -- 4) John Quigley reacts to the sound of chain saws near the centuries-old oak in Pico Canyon on Monday. Many celebrities are also rooting for the tree to stay put. David R. Crane/Staff Photographer |
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