Urban Forestry Tree Planting Contract (Order 2026-426)
At a glance
- What: Order accepting a contract with Paul Tree Farms to furnish and plant 950 trees for $398,050 under the urban and community forestry grant program, for the Office of Public Works.
- Where it stands: Approved by voice vote on the Committee of the Whole consent agenda on October 13, 2026. The final council vote is not yet confirmed.
- Next: Council action and the planting schedule.
Funding and plan
- Public Works Director Dave Fuchs said about $340,000 comes from the grant, $62,000 from a tax-increment district and about $30,000 from the city.
- Most trees go to economically distressed areas as the grant defines them (primarily wards 2 and 3), with others on South MacArthur Boulevard and downtown to replace dead or removed trees.
- The plan favors smaller ornamental trees suited to narrow rights of way, rather than the large sycamores and oaks planted decades ago.
Council input
- Alderman Gregory urged replacing trees that grow into power lines, especially on major east-side streets such as 11th Street and South Grand, with species that will not need repeat trimming.
- Alderwoman Conley asked about location criteria and offered streets in the lower-income areas of her ward.
- Alderman Williams asked whether the trees would be the smaller urban variety.
Sources
- Video: https://youtube.com/watch?v=A_-YH7zwsog (uploaded human-made captions)
Discussion time
About 4 minutes across 1 meeting (from transcript timestamps; approximate).
| Meeting | Minutes |
|---|---|
| 2026-10-13 - Committee of the Whole | 4 |
Log
- 2026-10-13 - Committee of the Whole — About four minutes of questions on locations, funding and tree type; approved on consent (4:11-8:08).