Salisbury accepts $148,267 Chesapeake Bay Trust grant to plant 834 trees

The Salisbury City Council on first reading accepted a $148,267 grant from the Chesapeake Bay Trust to plant 834 native trees across the city.

Associate Planner Zach White told council the Chesapeake Bay Trust awarded the city the Urban Trees Award Program grant and that the award supports the city’s FY 2025–2027 tree-planting plan. “The trust has awarded $148,267 to the city of Salisbury to support the city's fiscal year 2025–2027 tree-planting action plan,” White said. He described requirements to keep the funds in a dedicated account and to register planted trees with the Maryland Department of the Environment’s 50000 Trees tracking tool.

The grant will be disbursed in four phases tied to submission deadlines for required deliverables, White said. The city requested—and the Trust approved—an extension to align the grant schedule to the city’s ability to execute the project. White also said he has been coordinating with the Maryland Department of Natural Resources and the city’s field operations department to identify planting sites that avoid utilities and won’t obstruct walkways and street-sweeping operations. “I’m planning on… having [DNR] help me figure out where prime locations could be,” White said.

Public commenters and council members urged careful planning and community outreach. City resident Lynn Bratton said the idea is welcome but warned about past poorly planned plantings: “It’s a wonderful idea, but 800 trees is a lot of trees. And if we don't really know where we're going to be putting them, we need to make sure that they are going to be the appropriate size for the area that they're going to go in,” she said. Council members suggested partnering with Salisbury University student groups and community organizations for volunteer planting days and outreach at events such as the Third Friday downtown activities.

Key grant conditions that White highlighted include: registering planted trees with the Maryland Department of the Environment’s tracking tool, maintaining detailed expense records, and submitting progress reports by phase. White said he plans to prioritize existing planting strips, park clusters, and sites where canopy is lacking rather than make “bump outs” the default planting approach.

Council indicated consensus to proceed on accepting the grant and to have city staff coordinate community engagement and volunteer recruitment for planting events.

The city did not provide a final tree species list at first reading; White said species selection will follow best-practice matching to site conditions and the grant allows flexibility in tree types. Community members asked for notice before work begins in neighborhoods and for printed outreach to residents who may not use social media.