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Tree Canopy Plan In Works For BV
City officials are hoping to make Buena Vista greener.
Tom Roberts, Buena Vista’s director of community development, outlined a strategy for City Council at its Feb. 6 meeting that calls for planting more trees throughout the city and providing a means for maintaining them.
Roberts said city staff has been working with the Green Infrastructure Center in Charlottesville on an analysis of the Buena Vista’s tree cover and strategies to retain and increase the benefits provided by mature tree canopy. Also helping out with plans to make the city greener is Boxerwood Gardens, who had representatives, including student interns, taking part in the presentation to City Council.
The city’s present tree canopy is at 45 percent, said Roberts. He hopes to increase public engagement in maintaining this canopy and planting more trees. He estimated that 100 trees need to be planted each year just to maintain the current canopy. The city is receiving technical assistance from the Virginia Department of Forestry to develop a strategic tree canopy plan.
Based on what other cities are doing, Roberts said he’d like to see new tree plantings of 20 percent on public land and 80 percent on private land. He asked Council to consider adopting a tree ordinance and establishing a tree board to oversee the planting and maintenance of trees.
There are grants available to help pay for these efforts such as through the “cool trees” program at Boxerwood Gardens. Roberts said he wants to aim to plant more trees in Glen Maury Park and other city parks and recreational areas, along the major corridors, in Greenhill Cemetery, on the grounds of the schools, in the vicinity of the floodwall river walk and on various other public lands.
Roberts also presented a city hall landscaping plan that was developed this past fall by ABL Landscape Architects with the input of staff, elected officials and community members. Features of this plan include planting new trees and shrubs around the building, having a strip of ornamental grass and shrubs between the parking lots and sidewalk and installing benches under trees.
To implement this plan for city hall all at once would cost around $47,000, he said. However, Roberts suggested implementing the plan in stages and doing much of it in-house in order to save costs. He did say professionals should be hired to do the large tree plantings but perhaps staff could receive training to attain arborist certification.
Tree initiatives envisioned by Roberts include educating the public about the benefits of trees beyond beautification of the city. According to materials he handed out, trees regulate flooding, clean the air, lower city temperatures, reduce energy usage, clean storm water, support education and raise real estate values.
An ultimate goal could be to seek Tree City USA status. This designation recognizes cities that “make a commitment to urban forestry by allocating resources to tree planting and maintenance and engaging the public.”
The city is seeking input about a tree plan from citizens through a Buena Vista study and survey. To participate, visit the city’s website and connect to a link.
