Town staff working to clear tree planting backlog

Town staff have spent a chunk of 2025 figuring out how they will finally use the nearly $100,000 collected for tree planting over the past several years that have gone unspent.

But at the August 11 council-in-committee meeting, staff said they have essentially caught up on the backlog of tree planting through a consent application program.

According to a presentation and accompanying update report, a backlog dating as far back as 2008 has been cleared up to September 2022. Following council direction late last year, staff developed a plan to contact property owners and use up the funds.

“From May to currently, we’ve been implementing that plan, delivering planting projects across the town. These efforts will continue through until October, and into future years,” said Zachary George, junior environmental planner.

More than 200 payments through consent applications had been paid to the town since 2008. Those payments were $500 up until 2023, when it was increased to $1000 to reflect the increasing cost to purchase and plant trees.

The goal with the program was to plant boulevard trees. George said in cases where a boulevard tree wasn’t possible, residents were given an opportunity to receive a tree they could plant on private property. Otherwise, the money would be used to plant trees elsewhere in the municipality.

Throughout this year the town ran several planting events. Those included school events to teach children the importance of trees, a planting on Coral Avenue to replace seven mature trees that were lost to a storm, as well as plantings at the Black Creek water windows and at AC Douglas Park.

Councillor Ann-Marie Noyes said she was happy to see staff working on this project, but still had some concerns.

“I do want to appreciate that staff have started this tree planting program, but the problem didn’t start in 2008 and I’m not sure what the plan is for the money that was collected before 2008,” she said, adding that she remembers paying $375 into the tree planting program 2007 as part of a severance she did.

Noyes said the town should also find a way to support property owners who opt for a private planting. Staff said liability concerns make it difficult for town staff or town-contracted staff to plant a tree on private property. The councillor said the town could still provide some financial support.

“I understand the liability, I’m not saying we plant the tree, I’m not saying we hire a contractor to plant the tree. I’m saying we help…with a reimbursement,” she said.

She also said the town should have done more than send out one letter to property owners asking for their preference.

“I don’t think we tried hard enough,” she said.

Council directed staff to look at ways to do further outreach to the property owners in question, look at reimbursement options and to see if they can find more information on payments received prior to 2008.

The town held about $190,000 total in its tree fund as of January 2025, though that included money collected through tree clearing penalties and the private tree permitting system as part of the new tree bylaw.

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