Commemorative Trees and Shrubs (Report Reference) S eptember 28, - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Commemorative Trees and Shrubs

(Report Reference)

S eptember 28, 2015

BOARD MOTION: Commemorative Trees & Shrubs

THAT the Vancouver Park Board direct st aff to report back by S ept ember 2015 or sooner on options for establishing a commemorative tree and shrub planting program for the Vancouver Board of Parks and Recreation that: a) responds t o the reasonable requests of resident s of Vancouver; b) provides commemorative tree and shrub plantings at a reasonable cost; c) advances the goals of the Urban Forest S trategy; d) and is revenue positive or neutral to the Park Board.

REPORT REFERENCE - OUTLINE

• Background –

history of commemorative tree donations

• Gifts for Parks Program –

current program status, develop new opportunities that link to Urban Forest S trategy

• Opportunities –

create sustainable sources of funding

• Next Steps - program

development, marketing, promotion

BACKGROUND

• Contributions to the Park Board help support our mandate
• Gifts for Parks Program –

donation program began in 1986

GIFTS FOR PARKS PROGRAM

• Includes opt ions t o fund and dedicat e park amenit ies (park

benches & picnic t ables) and commemorat ive t rees

• S

ince 1986, 150 commemorat ive t rees funded & plant ed

• In 2006, 70 t rees were funded as commemorat ive gift s and

plant ed in S t anley Park during t he rest orat ion of t he park aft er t he devast at ing st orm

• Park Board’s st rat egic

plan support s increased communit y giving t hrough ent repreneurial development

STATUS OF PROGRAM

• Commemorative trees are a popular donation item
• Receive many requests; not all can be met
• Focus on trees due to recognized challenges around

small plant or shrub commemorations (longevity, landscape design & maintenance)

• Current challenges:

availability of park planting locations, timing of planting, tree selections, and tree size .

OPPORTUNITIES

• Urban Forest S

t rat egy – present s new opport unit y

• Develop market ing and fundraising opport unit ies t o promot e

t he Urban Forest S t rat egy and secure funding

• Ident ify ways t o respond t o request s, provide t ree plant ings

at reasonable cost , advance t he goals of t he urban forest st rat egy

• Int roduce:
• Tree Trust
• Adopt -A-Forest
• Legacy Tree Endowment

OPPORTUNITIES – Tree Trust

Introduce a Tree Trust

• Promote need of support ing t ree plant ing and tree

replacement, as identified by Urban Forest S trategy

• Donations of any amount placed in an endowment fund
• Provides sustainable funding for tree plantings
• Donations recognized
• n website, on-site

signage

OPPORTUNITIES – Adopt-a-Forest

Introduce Adopt-A-Forest

• S

imilar to current commemorative tree program

• Individual or group contribut ions; used t o plant trees,

shrubs & other plant material in reforested areas

• S

upports the Urban Forest S trategy’s reforestation goals

• Provides a source of annual funding

OPPORTUNITIES – Adopt-a-Forest

• Donors encouraged to participate as caregivers for trees
• Encourages stewardship - adopt ers become invest ed in

watering and caring for the trees

• Engages large community groups

OPPORTUNITIES - Legacy Tree Endowment

Introduce a Legacy Tree Endowment

• Named endowment est ablished for larger gift s
• Trees plant ed in ident ified groves or clust ers in select parks

and dest inat ion parks (e.g., QE Park, VanDusen Bot anical Garden)

• Promot es t he need for a source of sust ainable finding t o

support t he Urban Forest S t rat egy

• Donat ions recognized on

websit e, named funds list ed

• n signage promot ing t he

grove

NEXT STEPS

• Continue

working with Urban Forest ry staff to implement an enhanced commemorative tree and shrub program t hat responds t o t he reasonable request s of citizen requests of Vancouver;

• Additional considerat ions for the commemorative tree

and shrub program will be included in the proposed plan to establish a Vancouver Parks Foundation

• Report back to t he Board by end of 2015 with

recommendations.