Tampa council delays transfer from Tree Trust Fund, orders detailed reporting before spending

TAMPA — At its June 26 meeting, the Tampa City Council unanimously approved a motion requiring the city to produce the annual tracking and reporting data for the five Tree Trust Funds before the council will approve a proposed transfer of trust-fund money.

Councilwoman Hertek read the ordinance language the council said it wanted produced: “a tracking and reporting system for each of the 5 trust funds shall be established to track each payment made into the fund and each mitigation tree planted.” The motion, seconded by Councilman Maniscalco, passed without a recorded dissent.

The action was prompted by multiple speakers during public comment who said the city has collected trust-fund payments but has not produced the annual reports required by the tree ordinance. Several speakers told the council the fund currently holds about $5,000,000 and that an immediate request on the agenda sought $334,748.48 from the trust funds for a street‑work change order tied to the city’s “pipes” program.

Contracting and neighborhood advocates said that the trust fund was created to pay for tree mitigation and replanting — not to be reallocated without transparent accounting. “The tree trust fund is money collected with the purpose of replanting trees. It’s not there to be used as a piggy bank to raid for other projects,” said Steve Michelini, a member of the public who addressed the council during comments.

City staff acknowledged reporting gaps and an administrative error in the finance resolution that placed the request before council. Budget officer Mike Perry told the council, “The mistake on the fin res is solely my responsibility in the budget office. I do apologize.” Deputy infrastructure administrator Brad Bear said specific tree-planting work was already included as a line item in a change order connected to a contractor’s pipes project and that staff had planted several hundred trees under that work.

Rather than approve the fund transfer, the council directed staff to provide the full data set required by the ordinance before any trust funds are used for projects outside the narrow mitigation purpose. Councilwoman Hertek specified the data she wants produced — verbatim from the city ordinance — including (1) each payment made into each fund with identifying source (for example, permit number), (2) each expenditure and the types and numbers of trees, (3) coordinates or other location data for mitigation trees planted with trust funds, and (4) health-status updates for mitigation trees at six months and one year after planting.

Council members and several public commenters emphasized species, size and long-term maintenance. Speakers said the ordinance’s distinction among type 1, type 2, type 3 and palm trees (see city tree matrix) matters for both canopy goals and cost accounting.

Outcomes and next steps: the council unanimously adopted the motion to require the ordinance-defined reporting before any transfer from the trust funds and agreed to continue the specific change-order items for further clarification, setting a return date of Oct. 9, 2025. City staff said the water department has appropriation authority for tree planting in the current contract, but the council nevertheless asked for a clear, auditable report covering the five planning-district funds (Central Tampa, South Tampa, West Shore/University, New Tampa and one other district).