Tree City USA

The Florida Forest Service administers the Tree City USA program in Florida. Information about the program is available on the Arbor Day Foundation website and the Florida Forest Service website. City and county governments, as well as federal military bases, are eligible for certification. To qualify, they must have a designated tree board, advocacy group, or department in charge of tree management. They must also have an enforced tree ordinance, work plan with an annual budget of at least $2.00 per capita and an annual Arbor Day celebration.

For those who go above and beyond the call of duty, there is the Tree City USA Growth Award. Certified communities who spend at least as much as they did the previous year on their urban tree program can qualify. In addition, they must either initiate new tree management activities, or expand their current activities over the previous year.

Florida’s newest Tree City USA additions:

• Biscayne Park
• Dade City
• Delray Beach
• Dunnellon
• Holmes Beach
• Lake Helen
• Maitland
• Newberry
• Palm Beach Shores
• Palmetto
• Venice

This brings our state total to 160 Tree City USA communities. The following communities in Florida were certified as Tree City USA's for 2010. New applicants are always welcomed.

An application for certification or re-certification can be downloaded in PDF format directly from the Arbor Day Foundation. Completed Tree City USA applications should be sent to:

Florida Forest Service
Forest Management Bureau
3125 Conner Boulevard, C-25
Tallahassee, FL 32399-1650

For further information, please contact Charlie Marcus, Urban Forestry Coordinator for the Florida Forest Service, via E-mail Charles.Marcus@freshfromflorida.com or by calling 850-921-0300.