Get Full Government Meeting Transcripts, Videos, & Alerts Forever!
Get email alerts on the Canopy Study topic
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
Tree board hears canopy study results and $50,000 FDACS grant for preserve plantings
Summary
A staff member briefed the Wellington tree board on a completed canopy study with heat-island mapping and reported the city was awarded a $50,000 grant managed by FDACS/Florida Forestry Service to support tree plantings at the preserve; members discussed frost damage and irrigation practices.
A staff member briefed the Wellington tree board on recent landscape work and on a new canopy study that maps heat-island areas and private/public canopy coverage.
"We did finish the canopy study," the staff member said, reporting the study contains detailed heat-island mapping and is being prepared for online publication. Staff said they are working on a closeout package and a view link for the city website so committee members can review the data before the June meeting.
The staff member also announced a $50,000 grant for plantings at a preserve, described as a one-to-one match managed through the Florida Department of Agriculture and the Florida Forestry Service. The staff member said the funds will be used to plant trees at the preserve and that the city will complete a closeout package to secure the award.
Board members and staff spent time on cold-weather damage to recent plantings. Staff explained that irrigation running during a prolonged freeze can increase freeze damage by creating evaporative cooling once watering stops: "...if you look around town... there's either a sprinkler or a pattern... we were 28 degrees for several hours and it was just enough to freeze it," the staff member explained. The board discussed altering irrigation schedules to reduce future freeze-related losses and identified replacement needs for a damaged gumbo limbo tree.
Members asked about canopy percentages; staff said the study suggests the town remains in the "teens" for overall canopy cover but that public plantings over the last several years will improve coverage as trees mature. The committee agreed to review the canopy study and incorporate its recommendations into the next iteration of the urban forestry management plan.
Staff confirmed the municipal pool project was complete and that some memorial tree plantings were added to the planting list. Details such as the exact planting schedule and specific planting lists will be revisited in June when members have had a chance to review the full canopy-study materials.
