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Urban Forestry kicks off master plan, aims to plant nearly 2,000 trees with ARPA funds
Summary
Department staff announced an urban forest master plan kickoff and said ARPA funds have already planted roughly 950 trees with a goal of about 1,950 total plantings this year; staff said they will update the city’s canopy assessment and pursue community engagement.
Dr. Toram Richardson, operations manager for Urban Forestry, and Michael Webb, urban forester, told the committee the department will begin an urban forest master plan this summer and is using ARPA and USDA grant funds to expand plantings and maintenance.
Richardson said operations manage permit reviews, debris response for storms, on-call coverage, and a network of contractors and community partners. He told the committee the division responds to requests entered through the city’s 311 system and tries to inspect tickets within five business days when conditions permit.
Webb said the planning division has executed contracts for a four‑year urban forest master plan that will include an updated urban tree canopy assessment, community engagement, and a 10–15‑year implementation roadmap to reach canopy goals woven into RVA 300 planning. He said the last canopy study was in 2010 and reported roughly 42 percent tree canopy; Webb said the new assessment will reflect development and change over the last 15 years and that the city is likely below the 2010 figure.
On planting and operations, staff said ARPA funds have paid for roughly 950 trees planted to date and plan to add about 1,000 more plantings by the end of 2025. Richardson reported that average wait times for non‑emergency pruning and removal were roughly 57 days for pruning and about 140 days for removals, noting those averages reflect contractors, weather, storm response, and other constraints. He said the current annual urban forestry operating budget (excluding ARPA) is about $1.4 million and that roughly 90 percent of day‑to‑day tree removal and planting work is contracted; the division is recruiting to expand in‑house capacity where feasible.
Webb also highlighted a recent change in state law (March 2025) enabling municipalities to create a tree canopy bank that permits developers to pay into a centralized fund if they cannot meet canopy requirements on site. Webb said the bank could help concentrate plantings in priority areas.
Committee members asked about zone coverage and staffing; Richardson and Webb said staff reassign operations as needed when workload spikes and that the master plan will guide long‑term staffing and investment. The committee requested copies of SOPs for triage and prioritization; staff agreed to provide those documents.
