



Metro hasn't even hired a contractor yet for the Purple Line's first extension (to Beverly Hills) and the bitching over construction is already at full blast. Residents of the Miracle Mile are worried about possible disruption regarding two periods of possible 24-hour subway work and now other Milers are freaking over tree removal that'll be required to build the subway tunnel and stations, Park Labrea News reports (Beverly Hills has their own set of grievances). Two Mexican fan palms on the median near Wilshire and Detroit have to go so Metro can move fiber optic cables around the La Brea station, which has drawn the ire of the Miracle Mile Civic Coalition, but the panic really set in with news of Metro's tree removal master plan. While 100 trees could be uprooted for construction, Metro says they will replace each tree with two new ones. The community did sink much time and money into the manicured median that now runs along much of the Mile, but the MMCC seems reluctant to break any eggs for the subway omelette: "In no case is it acceptable to start cutting down trees," MMCC president Lyn Cohen told the newspaper. "It's not OK to think that even one tree can be removed." Eesh. Councilmember Tom LaBonge is trying to mollify his angry constituents.

· Community Hopes to Cut Down Tree Plan [Park Labrea News]