Join us in celebrating Arbor Month in April as we begin our tenth year as a Tree City USA. There will be a series of events throughout Gresham to help celebrate.
- April 5 at Main City Park - Mayor Bemis will help kick off a series of planting events in April by reading the Arbor Month proclamation followed by a volunteer planting of twelve Akebono cherry trees at the new Ebetsu plaza at Main City Park's Tsuru Island.
- April 7 at Gradin Sports Park Arboretum - Volunteers are needed to help the Urban Forestry Subcommittee plant trees to build the new Fall Tree Collection.
- April 14 at Nadaka Nature Park - The Green Gresham, Healthy Gresham partnership with Friends of Trees and Multnomah County will host this Rockwood Neighborhood tree-planting event, which includes a volunteer planting at Nadaka Nature Park.
In 2008, Gresham was named a Tree City USA community by the National Arbor Day Foundation. The City earned the honor by making a special effort to preserve its thousands of street trees and manage the City’s urban forest.
This ongoing community improvement program shows that the City, residents and elected officials recognize that urban trees are closely linked to the community’s quality of life and take pride in working together as stewards to preserve and enhance the urban forest.
The National Arbor Day Foundation, in cooperation with the U.S Forest Service and Oregon Department of Forestry, recognizes cities across Oregon and the United States that meet the standards of the Tree City USA program.
Gresham must apply for the award each year and strives to meet these four standards:
- Have an established legal tree governing body (Urban Forestry Subcommittee)
- Maintain a comprehensive urban forestry program that spends at least $2 per capita on the urban forest
- Maintain a tree care ordinance (Section 9.1000 of the Development Code - Tree Regulations and Appendix 14 - Significant Trees)
- Hold an annual Arbor Day Observance and Proclamation (celebrated locally the first full week of April)
Ongoing recognition not only contributes to community pride but also keeps Gresham in touch with other cities and resources.