The City’s Urban Forestry Division has once again received a $20,000 Tennessee Agricultural Enhancement Program grant from the Tennessee Division of Forestry. The grant will make it possible for the City to plant about 300 trees on City property.
 
“This is a significant funding source for our ongoing urban forestry efforts as it helps us plant about half of the trees that our crews plant in the City each year,” said Kasey Krouse, the City’s Urban Forester.

Krouse said that this year’s grant will fund the purchase of 300 two-inch caliper trees of different species that will be planted along City rights-of-way in the communities of Parkridge, Five Points, Lonsdale, Oakwood-Lincoln Park, and Belle Morris, as well as in Victor Ashe Park.

Each year, the City plants between 500 to 600 trees in addition to trees planted through capital projects like the Cumberland Avenue Corridor Project, construction of Suttree Landing Park or the Magnolia Avenue Streetscapes Project.

City crews will begin planting the new trees this fall. Krouse estimated that the City has been able to plant 5,000 trees over the last 10 years through this state grant. 

There are many reasons to invest in trees. They improve our air quality – a tree absorbs up to 48 pounds of carbon dioxide a year. Shade provided by tree canopies also reduces temperature in a home by an estimated 10 degrees, meaning savings in utilities.

Trees improve property values. According to studies, property values increase 7 to 25 percent when surrounded by trees, and consumers spend up to 13 percent more at shops near green landscapes.

Trees may even aid in reducing crime. A study conducted in Philadelphia found that neighborhoods with abundant trees have significantly reduced crime rates compared to those without.

For more information on the City’s Urban Forestry Division, visit www.knoxvilletn.gov/trees.