Montreat tree board to file Tree City application, document volunteer hours and update management guide

At the April 14 meeting the Tadamon Treats Tree Board committed to preparing and filing its Tree City application and to documenting volunteer hours and photos needed for certification. The chair told members she would file the application in time for the board's May meeting. "I'll make the commitment to the board that when we have our meeting on, May 12, we will have filed our application," the chair said.

Board members clarified that the application submitted in December covers the prior calendar year (the December 1 deadline typically covers activities from 2025 for 2026 certification) and that volunteer hours must be unpaid community service; paid staff hours cannot be counted. Members agreed to gather volunteer tallies and photos from recent events to support the application.

Separately, members reported a large live-staking distribution of roughly 300–400 stakes/trees and discussed publicizing that availability in the Montreat Minute so residents could request material from Town Manager Savannah. "3 to 400 new trees are going into Montreat," one member said, and the board discussed routing interested residents to Savannah rather than to private volunteers.

The board also agreed to start a preliminary update of the Tree Management Guide (last revised in 2019) and to correct appendices that include the town ordinance and membership details. Members volunteered to compile sections and present a preliminary report at the May 12 meeting; the full revision will proceed later in the year.

Next steps: file the Tree City application, collect volunteer-hour documentation and photos, publicize live-staking availability via Montreat Minute, and perform an initial review of the Tree Management Guide at the May 12 meeting.