On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Department of Public Works confirmed with L.A. TACO that NBCUniversal did not secure a permit to trim a row of ficus trees outside of Universal Studios that striking entertainment workers say were cut back to intentionally limit the amount of shade on their picket line.
“Quick shoutout to the good people at @UniversalPics for trimming the trees that gave our picket line shade right before a 90+ degree week,” Chris Stephens wrote in a now-viral tweet.
"The City of Los Angeles Urban Forestry Division (UFD), which is part of the Bureau of Street Services (StreetsLA) and oversees permits for tree trimming in the City, did not issue any tree trimming permits for 3801 Barham Blvd," the Department of Public Works said in a statement to L.A. TACO.
"StreetsLA will issue a Notice to Comply to the property owner at 3801 Barham Blvd. This is standard practice for when work occurs in the public right-of-way without permission. Urban Forestry said they will work with other departments under the Bureau of Street Services "to confirm if this case warrants the issuance of an administrative citation or an administrative hearing."
In a statement to Deadline, a spokesperson for NBCUniversal said, "We understand that the safety tree trimming of the Ficus trees we did on Barham Blvd. has created unintended challenges for demonstrators. That was not our intention. In partnership with licensed arborists, we have pruned these trees annually at this time of year to ensure that the canopies are light ahead of the high wind season. We support the WGA and SAG’s right to demonstrate and are working to provide some shade coverage. We continue openly communicating with the labor leaders on-site to work together during this time.”