It’s called the Citrus Heights Urban Greening Strategy (CHUGS), and it’s a project to incorporate “urban greening” principles into City regulations and operations. The strategy includes development of a 25-year Urban Forest Master Plan to guide the management of public trees and foster a sustainable tree canopy across the city — and community input is being sought.
“The City of Citrus Heights recognizes the value of urban trees and landscaping for a healthy and aesthetically pleasing community,” reads a flier for a Tuesday-night community workshop. “We’d like to hear your thoughts and ideas as we begin developing the goals and objectives for CHUGS.”
[Related: Citrus Heights wins ‘Greenprint’ award from Tree Foundation]
Tracing its roots back to 2012, when California’s Strategic Growth Council awarded the City a $207,000 grant for development of a urban greening strategy, City staff began by creating a detailed inventory of all publicly owned trees in Citrus Heights.
The urban forest inventory documented a total of 27,994 public trees, split between City-maintained trees and those maintained by the Sunrise Recreation and Park District, according to a fact sheet posted on the City’s website. The City also found 175 unique species of trees, with aesthetic benefits to property value and retail being estimated at nearly $1.3 million.
[Read the six-page tree inventory report here: http://www.citrusheights.net/DocumentCenter/View/3181]
The City says it will be working to develop a vision for urban greening in 2015, as well as developing the Urban Forest Master Plan and a water-efficient landscape ordinance. The City’s website also shows staff will be working to develop native and drought-tolerant policies for landscaping, as well as a related update to the zoning code.
The community workshop will be from 6 to 8 p.m. on March 31, 2015, in the Citrus Heights Civic Center’s Trellis Hall at 6237 Fountain Square Drive. Those seeking more information are invited to call 916-727-4740, or visit the CHUGS page on the City’s website.
