Highwood Funding To Plant 150 Trees On Public & Private Property

HIGHWOOD, IL (JULY 2019) –The City of Highwood, in partnership with the Chicago Region Trees Initiative (CRTI) and key partner The Morton Arboretum, has received funding from the U.S. Forest Service to plant 150 trees on public and private property. The CRTI is a coalition of organizations working together to improve the health of the urban forest and quality of life for the people who live here.

City Manager Scott Coren cited the positive momentum of this eco-alliance. “We are constantly looking for ways to improve our community by beautifying our environment and looking out for our residents health and safety. We are honored to be a recipient of this funding to assist in purchasing trees to help beautify Highwood.”

According to Lydia Scott, Director, Chicago Region Trees Initiative, “Highwood is in the historic Lake Michigan Watershed which is required for this funding. There are only a few communities in Lake County that qualify. We had not worked with Highwood before and this was a great opportunity to do so.”

The Chicago region has lost 13 million trees in the past seven to ten years due to Emerald Ash Borer. These trees provided important services to communities and to the people who live and work there. Trees are critical infrastructure. They intercept and take up stormwater to reduce flooding, remove pollution from the air and water, reduce temperatures and energy usage during the summer, improve property values and economic development in commercial districts, improve mental and physical health, and provide important habitat for wildlife.

The City of Highwood is looking for public input to participate in the tree planting process. Partners from CRTI and The Morton Arboretum will be working with community leadership and individual residents in Highwood to provide workshops, training and one-on-one assistance to select and plant trees on their properties.

Workshops, tree related events, plantings, and site visits will begin in fall of 2019 and will continue through fall of 2021. If interested in participating in this project please contact Trinity Pierce at tpierce@mortonarb.org.

For any questions, please contact City Manager Scott Coren at 847-432-1924 or scoren@cityofhighwood.org. The City of Highwood, IL administrative offices are located at 17 Highwood Avenue, Highwood, Illinois 60040. For more information, please visit http://www.cityofhighwood.com.

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