Committee delays final action on Portland Urban Forest Plan amid proposed amendments and public support

Portland Parks and Recreation returned to the Climate Resilience and Land Use Committee Sept. 11 with a recommended draft of the Portland Urban Forest Plan and a resolution asking the committee to move the plan to the full council for adoption.

Sonia Szymanski, interim director of Portland Parks and Recreation, and Belinda Eudelman, the plan’s project manager, described the plan as a community‑driven, action‑oriented document that sets neighborhood and pattern‑area canopy targets, establishes more than 50 implementation actions, and identifies bureau leads and performance measures. “This plan was developed with input from dozens of staff and thousands of community members,” Eudelman said. She emphasized the plan is a high‑level guiding document distinct from the city’s tree code and noted staff intend the plan to direct investments, programs and future code updates.

Staff highlighted several actions they said would be central to implementation: a citywide street‑tree maintenance program, expanded tree‑planting partnerships (including a near‑term contract with Friends of Trees), coordination with the Bureau of Transportation to create additional space in streets for trees, and work with the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability to provide guidance for…