Discovery Phase is now complete!
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This plan is wholly based on input from the Louisville community. The "Discovery Phase" of input collection ran from March through August 2024 (see all the project phases here).
We have now compiled everything learned from the community throughout this process and will use this to develop strategies and action steps for the plan itself.
This page provides the final public engagement summary report (PDF format), major findings, notes from individual meetings, and information on engagement activities. Plan development is currently underway, with a draft expected in December 2024 or January 2025. Stay tuned! Main Findings from Public EngagementBelow are the major findings from the final public engagement summary, with more detail on each in the full report.
Finding 1: There is a lack of awareness and understanding around trees. Significant community outreach & education is needed. Across all avenues, there was a sense that the broader Louisville community is lacking awareness in three areas related to the urban forest: |
This report was created by compiling findings from the following: Advisory Group Workshops
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- First and most important is the role and importance of tree canopy for a healthy community. People are not connecting trees to the things they care about - health, economic prosperity, resilience to heat, strong communities. Instead, they often see trees as a costly maintenance issue. This is partly an educational issue and partly a marketing issue.
- Second is knowledge of care and management of trees. How-to information is needed once people understand the value and role of trees. This includes Information on choosing the right tree for the right location, how to plant and care for trees, and more.
- Finally, awareness and clarification on regulations and responsibilities is needed. In Louisville’s current system, the adjacent property owner is responsible for their street tree. Most are unaware of this and other regulations related to tree responsibility in Louisville.
Across all outreach, there was a consistent frustration expressed about the lack of resources dedicated and available for urban forestry efforts in Louisville. This need is highest for care and maintenance (vs. planting). This includes these areas:
- There is a lack of resources for public tree care (streets, parks). Metro’s current system for street tree management requires the adjacent property owner to care for their street tree. This has resulted in most street trees not cared for effectively, or have been removed altogether, especially in low income areas. Metro’s Urban Forestry division is under-funded and under-resourced for the work that is needed.
- There is a need for access to resources and expertise for trees on private property. As the majority of trees in Louisville are on private property, tree planting and care is left to private citizens. This means that those with resources can plant and care for trees, while those living at lower income levels will have less access to tree canopy and see more storm damage as a result. Many homeowners lack funds to maintain trees on private property and those living at lower income levels have less healthy trees and more storm damage as a result. Resources are needed to help bridge this divide.
- There is a lack of resources for care and protection of trees in development. While improvements to the current regulations can be made, at a minimum these regulations must be consistently and effectively enforced. This requires resources for staff and systems, which is lacking currently.
Working toward equity in tree canopy cover needs to be a major focus and overriding driver throughout this work. This includes:
- Prioritize highest needs first. Work needs to be focused in areas where canopy is low first. No matter whether in planting or preservation, resources must be prioritized for the areas of highest need first.
- Street tree care and management is inequitable. The current management approach in Louisville tasks the adjacent property owner with care of street trees. While many are not aware of this responsibility, they have noticed the resulting inequities in tree cover. In lower income areas, the cost of maintaining established trees is prohibitively expensive, resulting in a large number of trees in poor condition in the public right-of-way. In higher income areas, homeowners can better afford tree care and these neighborhoods benefit from healthier tree cover.
- Education and outreach is key. Education and outreach will be needed in these marginalized communities at multiple levels to increase the understanding of the benefits of trees and reverse resentment and misunderstanding.
Currently, funding and resources are lacking for care of established trees across both public and private land.
- By Metro Government. The fact that Metro has handed off care of street trees to adjacent property owners has resulted in a large quantity of street trees in poor condition, neglected or removed altogether.
- By property owners who don’t have funds. Many property owners do not have the resources to care for established trees on private property or their street tree. It is often a less expensive option to neglect or remove a tree altogether.
- By property owners who don’t see value. For those without a full picture of the role trees play (in public health and resilience in dealing with heat stress from climate change), many opt for the “cheaper” solution of removing the tree versus dealing with care costs and annual care work (raking, debris management, etc).
- By property owners without knowledge of care. Many would work to provide better care and management with help and direction from those with expertise in this area.
- By absentee property owners. Landlords often want to reduce maintenance and expenses on properties as much as possible, and this includes the maintenance and cost of caring for trees.
Finding 5: Poor management has created an environment where trees are looked at as a nuisance and financial burden by many in Louisville.
Poor care of existing trees (detailed in Finding 4), has resulted in an underlying fear of tree damage, and a general opposition to trees and the work to maintain them. While an outreach and education campaign is important to address this perception, as described above, many pointed out that this may be driven by the requirement for homeowners to maintain public street trees, especially in low income areas.
Finding 6: Walkability efforts in Louisville must include reducing heat with shade.
Whether a community is considered walkable involves a number of factors, including not just sidewalks and crosswalks, but also shade in the summer temperatures. As this is one of Louisville’s goals to better connect neighborhoods for pedestrians and transit options, trees must be included in any walkability projects.
Finding 7: There is concern for tree loss from development across Metro, and a focus for the outer areas of the county.
Loss of trees to development was a common theme of concern throughout the engagement process. Survey responses on this topic can be broken down into three areas:
- Regulations are not well-enforced. Preservation and planting of trees, while required, is not looked at as successful due to poor practices and lack of enforcement action that would ensure proper methods are used during development.
- Regulations are not strict enough currently. Concerns emerged on the clear-cutting and excessive tree removal occurring during development. There is a sentiment that the 20% tree preservation requirement is inadequate and should be increased. Many also called for more intensive replanting requirements, and more trees required in parking lots and along sidewalks.
- Improvements are needed to technical aspects of regulations. Many comments highlighted a need for better species choices in planting, for more planting diversity, and to ensure planted trees have space to grow long term.
There are many organizations in Louisville right now doing work that may overlap. Coordination is needed to ensure that efforts are not being duplicated, data is being shared, and overall, all organizations are working efficiently towards identified goals. A central organization or board may be needed to oversee implementation and provide leadership.
With so many organizations impacting trees, there is overlap and redundancy of efforts, competing priorities, and a general sense that “the right hand doesn’t know what the left is doing.”
It should be noted that this was a primary theme from the organization representatives that made up the Advisory Group, and less frequently heard from the public.
Finding 9: Trees are city infrastructure, and must be managed as such, and space made in all capital improvement work.
Based on the known roles trees play, and the warming climate, trees must be considered vital public infrastructure (vs. an aesthetic asset). Closely related is the need to create space for trees. In order to plant more trees, where needed, as part of the city’s critical infrastructure, work will be needed to make space for trees, especially in the areas that need it the most. In addition, as new infrastructure projects are designed and built, trees need to be considered a critical component and incorporated into the design from day one.
Finding 10: Quality of tree canopy must be improved.
Many pointed out that the quality of the existing trees is just as important as having dense tree canopy. This includes:
- Condition of Trees. Trees must be maintained in good condition in order to provide and fully realize all benefits to the community. This is covered extensively in Finding 4.
- Type and Placement of Trees. In order for a tree to grow to maturity in good health with fewer maintenance needs, they must be planted in a location that meets their needs and provides appropriate space. Careful attention is required to ensure “the right tree in the right place.”
- Native Species. Many participants through all avenues of engagement stressed the need to prioritize native trees. Species native to the region are better suited to local climate and weather conditions and provide critical food and habitat for wildlife.
- Control of Invasive Species. Invasive plants spread aggressively, reducing space for native species without providing the same benefits to wildlife that native species do. Invasive pear trees came up frequently as a problematic tree that is still very numerous in the landscape.
Currently, there is a lack of data on Louisville’s urban forest. Many acknowledged that without a full understanding of the scale and condition of the urban forest and its needs, the community will struggle to determine their needs for funding and resources. Data needed includes:
- Knowledge of public trees for better management. The number and condition of Louisville’s public trees is currently unknown. Without an understanding of the public tree population, Louisville Metro does not have the information needed to accurately budget and plan for the care and maintenance of public trees. A complete, up to date public tree inventory is needed to understand this population.
- Understanding of what the urban forest looks like on private lands. There is no data about the urban forest that is located on private property, which is where the majority of Louisville’s urban forest is located. Information on diversity, condition and other metrics will help assess the health of Louisville’s urban forest, and possibly identify resources that may be helpful to private landowners to care for their trees.
- Pressure from invasive species. There is limited information on invasive species types and populations, but complete data would provide the information needed to plan control methods on a regional scale.
- Why losses are occurring. Current urban tree canopy analysis data has identified where losses or gains are taking place, but there is no data-backed understanding yet of why these losses are taking place.
- Effectiveness of tree protection code. When exploring whether the code that protects trees during development needs to be updated or revised, some cited the need for data or results on the impact the code is actually having on tree canopy cover. More data is needed here.
Many saw the community’s tree needs as an opportunity to get more local people working in the green industry. Developing professional training programs and assisting with job placement was suggested as a solution that would benefit trees and people who need stable employment.
Finding 13: Many expressed appreciation for this effort.
Many expressed thanks for the work being done to develop a plan to improve Louisville’s tree canopy.
All of this input (found in more detail in the final public engagement report) will be used to build Louisville‘s Urban Forest Master Plan.
Engagement Activities - Summer 2024
We made it a priority to come to you. Who wants one more meeting to attend, right? We asked the community to invite us to a group event - neighborhoods, clubs, faith-based groups, professional associations, wherever people were gathering. We met with many groups (listed below), and shared some knowledge on tree canopy in Louisville, and listen to groups' concerns, priorities, needs and more. We met with the following groups, reaching over 450+ people. Thanks for inviting us over!
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KNLA Winter Conference
University of Louisville Class West Louisville Bus Tour Bellarmine Class Woman's Club of Louisville Jefferson County League of Cities Brownsboro Village Garden Club Louisville Suburban Rotary Green Drinks Louisville Nursery Association Tyler Park Neighborhood Association |
Portland Neighborhood Association
NERL Community Meeting German-Paristown Neighborhood Association Shelby Park Neighborhood Association Floyds Fork Coalition (FFC) St Joseph Neighborhood Association Taylor Barry Neighborhood Association Breckinridge Estates Neighborhood Association Farsley Moreman Landing Board Meeting Locust Grove Board Meeting |
The UFMP Online Survey ran from February through August 2024. We asked for comments, thoughts, and opinions in a 15 question survey, available in both Spanish and English. We received over 1,400 responses, the summary provided at the top of this page.
Community Events at Libraries. We hosted multiple events across Louisville this summer, plus one virtual event. These consisted of a short presentation on the project, followed by group discussion on community priorities and needs.
- Shawnee Library - Wednesday, May 29
- Southwest Regional Library - Wednesday, June 5
- Iroquois Library - Saturday, June 29
- Northeast Regional Branch - Wednesday, July 3
- Jeffersontown Library - Wednesday, July 24
- St. Matthews Library - Saturday, August 24
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Virtual Q&A Session - Wednesday, August 7. We also hosted a Virtual Q&A session for those unable to make it to a library event.
Watch the 1 hour video on YouTube. |
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Kick-Off Event with the Dep. Mayor - March 28. We had an official kick off event at 527 W Jefferson St, Louisville, KY 40202 - Mayor's Gallery (4th floor) - on March 28, 2024, 3-5 pm. |
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TreeFest was held on April 13th at Petersburg Park from 11AM-3PM. A booth was set up for people to learn about the plan and provide input on boards set up and access to the survey. Great turnout, great event!
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We also put out ads on social media platforms, notifications via other traditional media outlets, and had a table at a number of events throughout the summer:
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