Consultant outlines benefits, costs and time needed for native landscaping in New Albany

The New Albany Sustainability Advisory Board on July 17 heard a detailed presentation from landscape consultant Matt Kellogg of MKSK on the ecological and practical considerations of expanding native landscaping in the city.

Kellogg told the board native plantings support pollinators, increase biodiversity and help with erosion control and water-cycle regulation. He said New Albany currently has roughly 23% tree canopy cover and that the city maintains about 25,000 trees; expanding canopy and native plantings will be a long-term effort that requires planning for establishment and maintenance.

"It takes probably 3 to 5 years for those forbs to really establish and grow before you really see an impact," Kellogg said, describing the multi-year timeline for seeded native mixes to mature. He warned that many native-planting projects require active follow-up: some mitigation projects have maintenance commitments of up to 10 years.

Kellogg described three recurring obstacles: public perception and aesthetics, contractor capacity and responsibility, and the multi-year process of establishment. He said contractors hired for general landscaping frequently lack restoration expertise and that responsibility for long-term outcomes is often unclear once a contractor leaves a project. "We try to assign responsibility long term, but it becomes an issue because most of these are tied to other contracts and…there's no very specific source of responsibility attached to the outcome," he said.

Board members asked about floodplain species and examples suitable to the local climate. Kellogg listed sedges, grasses, forbs and shrubs (buttonbush, dogwoods, swamp rose) as typical choices for riparian plantings and encouraged edge plantings and shrubs such as staghorn sumac as early, legible steps toward more extensive native areas.

Staff outlined a new, pilot invasive species "trade-in" rebate to be rolled into New Albany's existing backyard rebate program. Under the plan, residents who provide evidence they removed qualifying invasive plants can receive a $150 rebate that stacks with the current $100 rebate, allowing up to $250 for native plant purchases, with a mid-September launch planned.

Discussion also covered where native plantings are appropriate in public right-of-way and the Technology Manufacturing District (TMD). Staff said landscape plans in the TMD — the zoning district that includes the Intel site — must follow preapproved native seed mixes and planting standards. "Anything that they're planting has to be native. Period," staff said when asked about code requirements.

Board members favored incremental pilots rather than wholesale conversions: suggestions included testing one side of a street, establishing planting strips at fence lines, or creating educational pilot plots in parks to build community familiarity and staff experience. Kellogg recommended broad outreach — signs, social media, school programs and interpretive materials — to change perceptions and set expectations during establishment years.

The board did not take formal action tonight on policy changes. Staff said the presentation is the first of a two-part series and the board will revisit the topic next month to consider possible next steps, pilot locations and budget implications.