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Escondido launches condensed urban forestry plan after federal grant timeline cut
Summary
City staff and consultant Dudek reported early findings on Escondido's urban forest: 18% canopy cover, a high share of high-water-use species, and a compressed work timeline after federal grant changes; staff invited public input and announced free street-tree pickups.
City staff and consultant Dudek presented a status update on the Escondido urban forestry management program, briefing the council on initial data, outreach and next steps after the federal grant timeline was shortened.
Associate planner Priscilla Verldon said the program started after the city accepted a U.S. Forest Service grant tied to the Climate Action Plan but that recent federal changes reduced the grant timeline from three years to six months. "Despite that... city council allowed staff to proceed with this effort, and we have kicked off the project," Verldon said.
Dudek urban-forest planner Kanami Ohtani presented early findings: the city'wide canopy cover is about 18 percent; the publicly managed inventory has a high proportion of queen…
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