A minimum number of trees planted by the city each year, OR at least 2-3 trees planted for each city tree lost.
An overall city tree canopy of at least 30% and/or a canopy above 60% for residential areas.
An overall city tree canopy of at least 40%, with goals for canopy over parking lots (such as 50%), canopy over residential (60% - 75%), canopy over commercial/industrial.
Implementation details: The City of St. Anthony has a tree budget and regularly adds or replaces boulevard and park trees. The City has at least 75% tree coverage for residential zoning.
Implementation details: In July 2012, Cottage Grove created a Public Landscape Initiative Program to motivate volunteers and employees within the City to contribute to beautification efforts. Projects are focused on active management of the urban forest, reforestation of highly visable community parks, public lands, and transportation corridors as well as provision of tree planting/landscaping , employee team building, and community volunteer opportunities. These tree planting and landscape goals are recorded and budgeted in our CIP through 2018. The city also recorded all of our boulevard trees in the community via GPS to help inventory, identify condition, size, species and other concerns with tree growth projections, disease monitoring, and tree trimming. This allows to provide a detailed management plan that aids in our budget preparation.
Implementation details: The city does a spring and fall planting every year and looks for spaces in newly developed areas to plant new trees. We also keep record of places that we have had to remove trees so that we make sure to replant in those areas. We received an Emerald Ash Borer grant and are working to reduce the number of Ash trees by replacing them with other varieties throughout the city.
Implementation details: Eagan has a green space ordinance, which includes pervious/impervious requirements as well as tree mitigation policies, but no requirements pertaining to canopies per se. The City is likely close to meeting these percentage requirements, but nothing documented at this time. The Citys GIS staff is currently working with Dakota County to determine if any GIS technology would allow us to determine our tree canopy percentages.
For more information contact: Greg Hove (City staff) | ghove@cityofeagan.com | 651/675-5319
Implementation details: The City is currently engaged in a tree canopy study to determine the species composition and percent of canopy. The canopy study is part of an ongoing Community Preparedness Project with the University of Minnesota
Implementation details: The city has a standing line item in the budget each year for tree planting and maintenance. In 2013, the city planned for and budgeted funds to plant 500 trees.
In 2009, the City of Woodbury received a Community Conservation Assistance Grant through the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources’ Metro Greenways Program. The purpose of the grant was to conduct an Urban Tree Canopy assessment, in order to determine the current tree cover across the city. The Urban Tree Canopy (UTC) is the layer of leaves, branches, and stems of trees that cover the ground when viewed from above.
The most important finding of the UTC assessment was the percent tree canopy cover for the City of Woodbury. The city currently has a canopy cover of approximately 22%. The 70% of the city that is developed to its ultimate condition has a canopy of 23%. There is a significant range in the canopy among neighborhoods. Neighborhoods, depending on age and development practices at the time of development, have a canopy cover anywhere between 10% and 50%.
Based on the results of the UTC, the city set goals for increasing UTC, developed an implementation plan for achieving the goals, and has established a monitoring program to track progress. Based on research identifying the benefits of trees in the urban landscape, Woodbury has adopted the goal of increasing the UTC in the city’s 2030 Comprehensive Plan. These benefits include improved water and air quality, reduced heating and cooling costs, and increased property values.
no. 16 
Best Practice Action 3
