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Resident urges council to protect Charleston’s mature trees, suggests incentives and partnerships
Summary
Patricia Smith, a native Charlestonian, told the council that 'old growth' trees are disappearing across neighborhoods and urged tax incentives, stipends and public recognition to preserve mature trees, noting stormwater and infrastructure benefits and that over 90% of city trees are privately owned.
A Charleston resident on the council agenda urged elected officials to do more to protect mature trees in neighborhoods, arguing that big trees provide stormwater management, habitat and neighborhood character and that private owners need incentives and recognition to preserve them.
"Save the ones you've got. Protect the ones you have," Patricia Smith told the council. Smith described finding stumps of large trees while walking through Kanawha City, the East End and South Hills, and said that losing mature trees reduces stormwater mitigation and accelerates infrastructure wear.
Smith proposed several policy ideas for 2026 including public–private partnerships to restore and protect aging trees, tax incentives or stipends for owners who preserve mature specimens, and public recognition programs to celebrate individuals who care for urban canopy. She also told the council that ‘‘over 90% of the trees in Charleston are under private ownership,’’ and urged the city to consider measures that help private owners maintain large trees.
Council thanked Smith for the recommendations; no formal action or vote was recorded on urban-forest policy during the meeting. Council members said they welcome further collaboration with residents and staff on potential programs ahead of next year’s budget cycle.
