What’s that, up in the sky?! Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Nope, it’s just cleaner air in the City of Rancho Cordova!

In December 2015, the City of Rancho Cordova took steps to become more proactive in the protection and expansion of their urban forest by committing to a set of municipal standards for urban forestry. Since then they’ve worked closely with the Tree Foundation to engage the community and completed their pilot tree planting project, 100 Trees in Lincoln Village! It has been a BUSY six months, but this is just the beginning.

The fun started earlier this year when the It Takes a Lincoln Village (ITLV) Neighborhood Group showed interest in creating more drought resistant landscapes in their community. Knowing the connection between the benefits of trees and community health, we saw this as an opportunity to grow tree canopy and save water! Utilizing the Tree Foundation’s NeighborWoods Program we were able to make free, SMUD sponsored, shade trees available for residents, while helping ITLV create design palettes for their front yards.

On a soggy Saturday in March, we threw a barbecue to build community support for the 100 Tree Project. It was a successful morning with a beautiful red oak planted on the campus of A.M. Winn Elementary and the names of 35 community members collected who were interested in getting a tree! Additionally, in a unique show of support for the project, the City of Rancho Cordova announced that they would help homeowners with the planting and watering of their front yard trees.

April saw the Sacramento Tree Foundation’s community foresters swing into action, visiting with residents to determine the best places to plant trees and the best type of tree to plant at each location to maximize the benefits of shade. The foresters also provided expert help on tree planting and care techniques to ensure that the trees thrive once they are in the ground.

Trees were delivered, along with stakes and ties for free; and 70+ community members banded together to plant 65 front yard trees the morning of Saturday, May 21. Individual residents also planted 27 trees in their backyards for a total of 92 trees. While we didn’t reach our goal of 100 trees on May 21, it is important to note that 4 more trees are scheduled to be planted at A.M. Winn and 20+ will eventually be sited in a neighborhood park.

It was truly a celebration of the Lincoln Village neighborhood. We are extremely grateful to the wide range of volunteers who helped, which included local Scout troops, seniors, Cordova High students, city staff and community leaders. Mayor Sander was live on Good Day Sacramento during the 8:00 A.M. hour.

Where will we be next in Rancho Cordova? Maybe we’ll be in your neighborhood! Many thanks to the city for designating Measure H, Community Enhancement Fund, to the growth of your urban forest!