It was the striking red leaf pedicels that stood out from a distance on these Daphniphyllum macropodum on the Siebold Trail in the garden. These were written up as a Photo of the Day in 2007, with a comment that being able to see the berries (and presumably the red pedicels) so easily is unusual for this tree. A few comments attributed the no-longer upright leaves to wet conditions.
Yes: It appears to be declining. I believe in the Seattle arboretum there may have been some problems with root pathogens on this in the past.