Progress Report: September 2015
Letter from the Executive Director, Steve Grantham Dear Community Partners, About a year ago, I began floating the idea of developing an Urban Forest Master Plan to the people who were engaged with Up With Trees - board members, donors, volunteers. I quickly discovered that once you have planted the seed (if you'll excuse the tree pun), it is amazing how quickly an idea can begin to grow. Over the last several months, we have seen incredible collaborations come out of this idea -- developing a dialogue that has spread into the community about what people would like to see in terms of Tulsa's trees. We have heard stories, gotten feedback, and ultimately gotten to see the Love that Tulsans have for their trees. We have taken your excitement and allowed it to fuel our momentum in moving forward with the development of this plan. In this progress report, you will see the steps we have taken since we held an initial Symposium in June, and the progress we hope to make in the next year. You will also see the feedback that you have sent in, the research that is being done, and learn more about the people who are engaged in this project. I hope you will ďŹ nd the information helpful and that you will continue to be a part of this important project as we go forward. Thanks again for your input. We could not do this without you!
Steve Grantham Executive DIrector, Up With Trees
Advisory Council Meet your Advisory Council. This team of people is working to help formulate the goals, strategies and implementation plan for the Urban Forest Master Plan. We are grateful to have representatives from all backgrounds of experience, from all geographic locations in Tulsa, and more.
Project Team Up With Trees is providing funding, oversight, and direction. City of Tulsa provided information regarding existing city plans. Davey Resource Group will complete the municipal forest resource analysis, and the iTree ecosystem analysis, and prepare the Urban Forest Mast Plan in collaboration with Up With Trees and the Advisory Council. Schnake Turnbo Franke facilitated the Urban Forest Master Plan Symposium engaging private and public stakeholders in a discussion concerning the future of the urban forest. The Advisory Council will advise in the creation of a Tulsa Urban Forest Master Plan, advise on necessary code and ordinance changes, and serve on boards of community partners to spread vision of Master Plan.
Advisory Council Members Steve Grantham, Up With Trees Anna America, Tulsa City Council Richard Bales, Tulsa County Parks Mark Bays, Urban Forester, OK Forestry Services Jeannie Cue, Tulsa City Council Nick Doctor, Tulsa Regional Chamber Joe Howell, Howell & Vancuren, Inc. Dr. Valerie Jernigan, University of Oklahoma Karen Keith, Tulsa County Commissioner Josh Miller, Tulsa BeautiďŹ cation Foundation Matt Newman, Covanta Energy Michael Patton, Land Legacy Trust Gary Percefull, Tulsa Board of Education Mike Perkins, Urban Forester, City of Tulsa Michael Reed, North Tulsa BeautiďŹ cation Eric Richards, Maxine & Jack Zarrow Family Foundation Joe Roberts, AEP - PSO Vernon Seaman, INCOG Tom Wallace, Wallace Engineering Mary Williams, Greenwood Chamber of Commerce
GATHERING THE DATA Shaping the Vision
Results from the Benchmark Report As part of this process, our friends at Tree Pittsburgh provided a Benchmark Report of urban forest programs in comparable cities across the country. The major takeaways from this report are the following: Having a corresponding city entity (i.e. urban forester) Addressing issues concerning who is responsible for the care of right-of-way trees Reviewing city ordinances regarding trees and addressing potential challenges that currently exist Making trees a part of city planning (looking at how we coordinate with different entities within the city to ensure that trees are part of the planning process) Developing a maintenance plan for the trees that are planted Creating the right team to develop the plan, and then the best collaborations to implement the plan Results from the Symposium Report In June, Up With Trees hosted a Symposium to bring together to engage stakeholders in a conversation about what Tulsa will be and how the landscape of Tulsa will look in the coming decades. The results of the afternoon strategic planning session are as follows: Involving schools and the community will be key Identifying who is going to maintain and developing a plan for tree maintenance Having an impact for under served communities Looking at the long-term sustainability of the urban forest (diversity of species, age, distribution) Educating people about "right tree, right place", the importance of trees within the community (historically, scientiďŹ cally, etc.) Engaging school systems to educate students about trees Relying on data to shape the plan and measure success (particularly in the form of measuring return-on-investment)
FIRST STEPS iTree Eco Assessment Progresses The first step in formulating the Urban Forest Master Plan is to assess what we currently have. Up With Trees has partnered with Davey Resource Group to begin gathering this data through an iTree Eco Canopy Assessment that will be used to determine health and constitution of the trees of Tulsa. Here is some of the data they will be assessing: • Percentage canopy coverage • Species distribution • Health and viability of the current urban forest This assessment will also quantify in real dollar amounts the environmental and economic benefits that Tulsa's trees provide. This includes: • Stormwater interception • Ozone mitigation • Carbon sequestration • Aesthetics and beautification within the community The assessment, which began in late July, will be finishing up over the next month. Once the report is finalized, we will have concrete data with which to educate the public as to the benefits that Tulsa's trees provide on an annual basis, as well as planning tools to help shape the future of the urban forest.
“We're traversing the various landscapes in and around Tulsa to better understand the urban and wild forests that grow around us.” -Joe Steinfeld
Consulting Arborist Davey Resource Group
GATHERING THE DATA
Public Survey Results Thus Far* Total Surveys: 391
What we’ve heard from you
Over the past three months, Up With Trees has been sending out surveys to the Tulsa public asking questions regarding Tulsa's trees. We have had great response from these surveys, and the results are shown below. Where would you want trees planted?
What does Tulsa’s canopy need most? 10% Community Education About Trees 19.7% Protect the Trees for Future Generations 16% Better Maintenance
.3% Fewer Trees
15.6% Shopping Centers 12% Schools
54% More Trees
3.8% Hillsides
6.3% 6.6% Parks & Lining Cemeteries River & Other Water Sources
24.6% Neighborhoods
30.7% Main City Streets
.5% Homes
If you have room to plant a tree in your backyard, what type of tree would you plant? 10% None/ No Room to Plant
31.7% Large Shade Trees
27.4% Fruit Trees
10.2% Evergreen Trees
20.7% Small Flowering Trees
*We are still accepting surveys. To tell us what you think of Tulsa’s trees visit www.upwithtrees.org
WORKING TO FUND THE PLAN - Phase 1 How can you help? Visit www.upwithtrees.org
Need $36,000
$15,000 H.A. & Mary K. Chapman
$25,000 Margery Mayo Bird Foundation
and Donate today!
Grants Applied for to Support the First Phase of the Master Plan AEP/PSO Grace & Franklin Bernsen Foundation The A.R. & Marylouise Tandy Foundation Inasmuch Foundation Patagonia Bank of Oklahoma
Where do we go from here? September/October Finish iTree Eco Canopy study and assess the data Continue to gather survey results from the public concerning Tulsa's trees Work with Advisory Council to establish goals for the Master Plan
November/December Utilize information from iTree Eco to begin addressing questions raised from survey results and inform the development of the Master Plan