The Athens Shade Tree Commission reported progress on a proposed grant application to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources that would fund multiple urban-forestry initiatives, including a street-tree inventory, hazard pruning, workforce training and pilot projects to reuse urban wood and to establish a small urban food forest.
Commission members said the grant proposal currently includes a street-tree inventory and a planting‑site inventory, followed by a targeted round of hazard‑reduction pruning based on the inventory results. The commission also discussed investing part of the grant in training, standard operating procedures and management capacity to make the program sustainable.
“We have a rough agenda of what we want to see accomplished, a rough budget,” a commission member said. The member said Anne Bonner and Robert Bole of the Ohio Department of Natural Resources recommended that competitive grant proposals demonstrate programmatic, long‑term capacity — such as staff training and written protocols — rather than only one‑off treatments.
Commissioners said about $25,000 of the proposed project budget is currently unallocated and that, depending on final budgeting and city priorities, up to roughly $40,000 could be made available for management or training items. The grant application is due Aug. 27, and commission members said they expect to finalize selections and logistics before the next Shade Tree Commission meeting.
Two pilot projects were highlighted: an urban wood utilization pathway in coordination with MakerSpace, and a proposed small urban food forest sited between the bike path and community/student gardens. Commission members described the MakerSpace idea as a delivery-and-milling workshop to turn municipal wood waste from hazard removals into usable lumber and then a second workshop to make community items such as bat boxes, bee hotels or benches. Makerspace representatives were described as “really excited” about the idea.
On the food forest, commissioners said an area set back from the bike path — between community gardens and student gardens — remains under consideration; commissioners said they are discussing long‑term care and volunteer capacity. Commission members said they will meet with CFI and the West Side community garden representatives to identify stewardship plans and avoid imposing ongoing maintenance responsibilities solely on city crews.
Commissioners discussed contractor qualifications for grant-funded work. The grant requires ISA (International Society of Arboriculture) certification for work funded under the grant; the commission discussed notifying local contractors about certification requirements and possibly adjusting city contractor qualification language to ensure adequate bidders for grant work.
No grant award has been made; commissioners said they would submit the application on Aug. 27 and continue to refine the budget and program components in coordination with city staff.