Staunton Completes Major Grant-Funded Tree Planting Project

STAUNTON, VA (12/16/2013)(readMedia)-- The City of Staunton has nearly completed a major tree planting project thanks to funding from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation. Funds were awarded in February 2013 to purchase 70 shade trees for Staunton's parks, schools, and urban spaces as well as to construct tree planting islands in a downtown parking lot. The City of Staunton provided the equipment and manpower to plant the new trees and care for them. Seventy trees were purchased in the spring of 2013 and planted by City Parks & Rec staff. Project expenses for the spring-planted trees came in under budget, allowing City staff to purchase an additional 42 trees for fall planting. Work is now nearly complete with 105 trees planted, three new planting islands (each with a tree) constructed in the Old Firehouse parking lot, and only seven trees remaining to be planted. This will yield a total of 112 new shade trees. The project is a major boost to Staunton's regular tree planting efforts and allowed City staff to plant trees where they were needed most. In addition to beautifying Staunton and replacing trees that were lost due to storm

damage, this work furthers ongoing efforts to better manage the City's stormwater runoff. While the grant funding originated from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation, it has been administered by Green Infrastructure Center, Inc., with assistance from the Virginia Department of Forestry. Additional contact: Green Infrastructure Center, Executive Director Karen Firehock, 434.249.2492; firehock@gicinc.org.

Press release authored by Assistant City Manager: Steve Rosenberg. Submitted by Claire Richardson