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Princeton adopts 2025–2029 Community Forestry Management Plan
Summary
The Princeton mayor and council accepted a five‑year community forestry plan after a presentation by municipal arborist Taylor Sapuder. The plan sets canopy, planting and disaster‑planning goals and will be submitted to the state for required five‑year reporting.
Taylor Sapuder, Princeton's municipal arborist and a New Jersey licensed tree expert, presented the municipality's 2025–2029 Community Forestry Management Plan and the council voted to accept it.
The plan, Sapuder said, is a proactive five‑year guide to managing Princeton's urban forest, making the town eligible for state grants and sustainability points and helping preserve canopy and public safety. He told the council Princeton completed a partial inventory in 2022 and a full tree‑canopy assessment in 2024 and highlighted recent projects including a Quarry Park "micro forest" where about 2,000 plants were installed and a 45‑acre restoration in Community Park North. "Princeton strives to proactively preserve, enhance, maintain, and grow a sustainable community forest," Sapuder said.
Council members commended the Shade Tree Commission and staff for multi‑year work on the plan. Councilmember David said an outside academic contact had singled out Princeton's micro forest work as an early U.S. implementation of the Miraiwaki method. Councilmember Layton thanked staff for neighborhood plantings, and others noted the plan supports continued Tree City USA designation and grant eligibility.
The plan sets recommended actions including strengthening stream buffers, preparing a green‑streets policy, continuing street‑tree plantings (a goal included of at least 1,500 trees to be reflected in capital contracts), acquiring open space, updating debris and wildfire‑protection planning, and maintaining internal training capacity. Sapuder said about 95% of day‑to‑day tree work is completed by Princeton's in‑house crew.
During the meeting, the council moved and seconded acceptance of the plan and approved it by voice vote. The municipal arborist said the next step is submitting the five‑year program to the state and to Tree City USA and the New Jersey Urban and Community Forestry annual report process.
The council did not vote on any additional implementation funding at the meeting; specific capital allocations or grant applications will appear on future agendas.
