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Johnson County staff seek board signature on letter supporting state IRA tree-planting grant
Summary
County sustainability staff requested a letter of support and post-meeting chair signature for an Iowa Department of Natural Resources IRA-funded tree-planting grant to install roughly 50 trees across county properties over two planting seasons with maintenance funding included.
County sustainability staff asked the Board of Supervisors for authority to sign and submit a letter of support for a state IRA-funded tree-planting grant.
Alex Moss and Betsy Sotto said the Iowa Department of Natural Resources has a small grant program to plant trees for local governments. Moss described a plan to request funding for about 50 trees at county campuses including the Admin Building, the human services building and GuideLink, with planting across two seasons (fall 2025 and fall 2026) and funds for basic care and maintenance.
Staff noted species diversity in the planned plantings: "Jason is very knowledgeable and he has chosen out of the 50 the 50 trees, there's 17 different species represented," a speaker said, adding that the DNR maintains an approved species list. Staff requested the chair sign a letter of support at the meeting's close so the application could be submitted the same afternoon.
Supervisors asked about consultation with experts and species diversity; staff said Iowa City and other partners were consulted for right-of-way trees and that the grant will reimburse costs and cover multiple planting seasons.
No formal vote was recorded; staff requested the chair's signature and expected to deliver a physical copy after the meeting.
