QUIGLEY TO LEAVE 'OLD GLORY' OTHERS SET TO ASSUME PERCH IN ANCIENT OAK.Byline: Naush Boghossian 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. - Tree sitter 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. thought he would sit in the ancient oak for three days - no more than one week - before the developer and the county would agree to let the oak remain standing at its location. But on Christmas Day, after 54 days of weathering storms, biting-cold weather, being scrutinized by the public and news media 24 hours a day, and forgoing all exercise, Quigley announced that he would soon hand the perch to somebody else. ``We've always said we were hoping to have this resolved by Christmas, but obviously it's not going to happen,'' Quigley said Wednesday. ``I came up here with the simple purpose to protect this tree,'' he said. ``I thought it would be a no-brainer, but since I've been up here, the situation has been peeling away and I'm understanding how everything works. A bunch of guys A Bunch of Guys (BOGs), or Group of Guys (GOGs) are terms used by counter-terrorism officials to refer to small, self-organizing terrorist cells.[1] BOGs typically have little to no contact with global terrorist groups like al Qaeda, so they independently plan and are sitting in a room making plans to go out and bulldoze bull·doze v. bull·dozed, bull·doz·ing, bull·dozes v.tr. 1. To clear, dig up, or move with a bulldozer. 2. To treat in an abusive manner; bully. 3. a tree although there's public opposition to it.'' Quigley, 42, climbed the 400-year-old oak on Nov. 1 in an effort to block plans to chop it down. With the tree gone, Pico Canyon Road would be widened to serve houses being built in Stevenson Ranch by Laing Homes. Jeff Johnson, a 36-year-old mountain climber from 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, , will be the second to sit in the tree after Quigley climbs down - perhaps as early as this week. Johnson is a longtime environmental activist whose passion for saving trees began when he saw some being bulldozed near his kindergarten at Santa Clarita Elementary School elementary school: see school. . ``Call me a tree-hugger or what you will, but if you were influenced by trees as a child, you never lose it, and I never did,'' Johnson said. A team of local mountain climbers has prepared to rotate one by one into the tree if Johnson needs a break. Quigley, who will return to his job as an educator giving motivational speeches at Los Angeles Los Angeles (lôs ăn`jələs, lŏs, ăn`jəlēz'), city (1990 pop. 3,485,398), seat of Los Angeles co., S Calif.; inc. 1850. elementary schools about storm drain storm drain n. 1. A storm sewer. 2. A catch basin. systems and the ocean, said he will revel in his return to land. ``The worst part is the inactivity,'' said the avid sports enthusiast. ``I dream of running down the street at high speeds.'' Wednesday, about 60 supporters joined Quigley at the tree to celebrate Christmas. Locals have decorated the fence around the oak with tinsel tin·sel n. 1. Very thin sheets, strips, or threads of a glittering material used as a decoration. 2. Something sparkling or showy but basically valueless: the tinsel of parties and promotional events. and a Christmas tree Christmas tree Evergreen tree, usually decorated with lights and ornaments, to celebrate the Christmas season. The use of evergreen trees, wreaths, and garlands as symbols of eternal life was common among the ancient Egyptians, Chinese, and Hebrews. , and the big oak dubbed ``Old Glory'' has been decked with ribbons, chimes and Christmas ornaments. A Christmas feast replete with ``tofurkey'' - a tofu tofu Soft, bland, custardlike food product made from soybeans. Believed to date from China's Han dynasty (206 BC–AD 220), tofu is today an important source of protein in the cuisines of East and Southeast Asia. substitute for the traditional poultry - and gravy was sent up to Quigley in a bucket, along with Christmas presents. Quigley said he had mixed emotions about being up the tree on Christmas - a day he has spent with his girlfriend and her two children for the past five years. ``I would really like to be with my family right now, but they have been very supportive and they know it's an unusual circumstance and they want me to stay true to the cause,'' Quigley said. The county has stood solidly by its plan to move the tree to a different location so a four-lane road can be built. On Tuesday, Los Angeles County officials rejected alternate proposals by developer Bill Rattazzi and J. Brent Hoerner & Associates of Valencia, both of which allowed for the tree to remain in its current location. The county said the plans would make the road unsafe for drivers. The environmentalists will be switching to a long-term strategy for the tree-sitting, working on a plan that would rotate sitters. Quigley said he will continue to support the campaign and has not eliminated the option of returning to the tree at some point. Although the standoff with the developers and the county has not yet led to his desired result - to keep the tree in its location - Quigley believes the tree-sitting campaign is far from being a failure. ``We've won the battle that the tree should be saved, and it's now a question of how,'' he said. CAPTION(S): photo Photo: (color in SAC and AV editions only) Jeff Johnson, left, tries out the oak tree perch he'll assume when tree sitter John Quigley, right, climbs down next month. Gene Blevins/Special to the Daily News |
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