Public Probe into Possibly Purloined Palms

• Controversial Trees Mysteriously Disappear from Malibu High School Grounds Last Saturday •

How do 70-plus palm trees disappear from the grounds of Malibu High School without anyone questioning their removal, or being able to provide any information on their current whereabouts?
That’s the question now being investigated by the Lost Hills Sheriff’s Station after the school reported the alleged theft of the trees over the weekend.
MHS principal Mark Kelly told the Malibu Surfside News, “We at Malibu High did not authorize or know the trees were being removed. Similarly, no one at our district office authorized their removal.”
Kelly said, “Our information indicates that several individuals in two white trucks came to campus, removed the trees and filled the holes. I checked with our district office staff who reported that they had not authorized anyone to remove the trees."  
The school principal added, “We are at a loss as to who took them and have reported their removal to the Sheriff's Department."
Kelly said, “We have heard from both our director of maintenance and operations and the chief financial officer who both reported having no knowledge that the trees were being removed. These were the two individuals with whom we were discussing our options.”
Kelly indicated that the school and the district had been exploring whether some of the trees might remain on campus if moved to other areas of the campus where they would be less intrusive.
The tree were planted on the campus 12 weeks ago—over the Thanksgiving weekend—under similarly puzzling circumstances, with no public notice of the landscaping project having been provided.
Residents in the Malibu Park area have voiced concern that when fully grown, the queen palms could adversely impact their ocean views.
The trees are also viewed as highly flammable, and concerns were expressed about the appropriateness of their use as landscaping in a wildfire prone area.
Kelly said the school had hoped to “recapture some of the financial loss” from removing the trees by possibly selling them to other schools in the district.
The principal added that district staff was in the process of getting an estimate of what it would cost to remove the trees when it appears the palm pilferers took them without permission on Saturday.
Kelly said that, at this point, the MHS landscaping committee “is not seeking to do any new improvements but have committed to maintaining the many past projects that have been in completed in the last several years.”
                                                               —Anne Soble