Brookhaven will participate in the Trees Atlanta “Neighborwoods Program” for the second year in a row, hoping to have more trees planted than last year.
During a Sept. 8 meeting, City Council approved a $10,000 contract with Trees Atlanta to support the city’s Front Yard Tree Program, where members of the nonprofit will plant trees in residents’ front yards.
Trees Atlanta, a nonprofit that aims to protect Atlanta’s trees and green space, started the Neighborwoods Program in 2001 to plant more trees and educate residents in the metro Atlanta area about the importance of trees. The program operates in Chamblee, Sandy Springs and Atlanta, according to a city memo about the contract.
Parks and Recreation Director Brian Borden said Trees Atlanta will offer 52 trees to residents. Last year, 40 trees were available. Residents can apply to receive a tree, which will be planted on their property by Trees Atlanta. Applications, which have a $25 fee, will start to be advertised next week, Borden said.
After applications are submitted, a Trees Atlanta representative will go to the applicant’s house to see if the front yard can accommodate a tree.
Trees Atlanta will pick out the best type of tree and will plant it in the yard and do a follow-up watering on the tree. The organization has a two-year tree replacement guarantee, excluding “vandalism, vehicle impacts or acts of God,” according to the city memo about the contract. Residents are expected to water the tree about every 10 days for the first year and should notify Trees Atlanta if the tree seems unhealthy.
Though all 40 of the trees were reserved last year, only 28 were planted by Trees Atlanta in the city because of residents either changing their minds or not being reachable, city spokesperson Burke Brennan said.
In Chamblee, Trees Atlanta planted 25 out of the 40 provided, Chamblee spokesperson Tisa Moore said.
City Manager Christian Sigman said the trees will be planted in the winter, but the locations will be chosen during fall.
Sigman said last year, the city had a wait list within the first week, and the city has offered to take any leftover trees that Trees Atlanta may have from similar deals with other cities.
The city had a late start on the program last year, Borden said, so the city officials hope the earlier start will land more trees in residents’ front yards.
“It is a friendly competition between Brookhaven and the world on having the best streets, the best trees and the best pools,” Sigman said. “I think we’re winning all of those battles right now.”