Jacksonville, FL (June 24, 2022) – It is quite often that our office will receive inquiries about what programs exist to allow for residents to request trees to be planted in their neighborhood. The City of Jacksonville does have such a program, “The 630-CITY Tree Planting Program”, which is funded through the Tree Mitigation Fund and free to Duval County residents. In response to these inquiries, Council Member Danny Becton met with the city’s Chief Arborist, Daniel Gearhart, to discuss the program and how the community can become more informed about it, how the process works, and how the city conducts its survey to confirm trees can be planted along the requested city Right-of-Way area.
The 630-CITY Tree Planting Program is set up by the City of Jacksonville’s Urban Forestry Team in order to use the city’s Tree Mitigation Fund. The Tree Mitigation Fund is an account utilized by the City of Jacksonville for the sole purpose of planting trees. When landowners and developers clear land they must obtain a tree removal permit from the city. This mitigation fee is then utilized by the city to plant trees in an attempt to offset the additional environmental stresses from deforestation including air pollution, erosion, storm water runoff, and much more. The City of Jacksonville’s Urban Forestry Team created the 630-CITY Tree Planting Program in order to reinvest this money from trees that have been removed into reforesting our city with new tree canopy. Further, because this fund exists, residents can request trees to be planted free of charge.
If a resident is interested in having trees planted, they should first call 630-CITY or fill out an application at COJ.net – Tree Commission. The tree must be planted in a city Right-of-Way (along a city street, in front of a home or business), which is the area in front of one’s property that is desiring to have the tree planted. Once the application is submitted, a staff member from the Urban Forestry team will determine if there’s enough room as well as to make an evaluation based on the following criteria:
- Overhead utility lines;
- Proximity to existing tree canopy;
- Right-of-way space;
- Street lights;
- Other municipal infrastructure including, drainage ditches, sewers etc.;
- Proximity to intersections and street signs.
Trees planted for this program must meet top industry standards for quality, and all trees must be Florida Fancy or No. 1 which is the highest grade of tree nursery stock when selecting trees. Most tree species planted are 3 inches in caliper. This means the trunk is 3 inches in diameter when measured 6 inches above the rootball. They’re typical between 8 ft – 12 ft tall depending on species. Most trees are balled and burlapped (B&B), meaning the trees are grown in the field and dug out with a tree spade, wrapped in a burlap bag, and hardened off before planting in order to achieve maximum survivability.
For more information on the process, please download the PDF at the bottom of this article, and for any questions related to the 630-CITY Tree Planting Program, please visit the links listed below.