Medina again named a ‘Tree City’ by Arbor Day Foundation

Photo by Ginny Kropf: Kathy Blackburn, left, president of the Medina Tree Board, shows third-grader Elizabeth Dresser how to throw the first shovel of dirt around the tree being planted in front of Gwinn Street Park on April 30 during an Arbor Day celebration.

MEDINA — The Village of Medina has been named a “Tree City USA” for its commitment to an effective urban forest management, the Arbor Day Foundation announced.

Medina has earned the distinction as a “Tree City” for several years. The village typically plants 40 to 60 trees a year.

Medina has a Tree Board and also has formed a “Releaf Society” to raise money to plant new trees to replace some of the old ones which have or will be taken down, especially at Boxwood Cemetery. The Tree Board helps to decides what kind and where trees can be planted and which need to be trimmed or cut down.

Medina meets the Tree City USA criteria with four requirements: a Tree Board or department; a tree care ordinance; and annual community forestry budget of at least $2 per capita; and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.

“Tree City USA communities see the impact an urban forest has in a community first hand,” said Dan Lambe, president of the Arbor Day Foundation. “The trees being planted and cared for by Medina are ensuring that generations to come will enjoy a better quality of life.”

With communities worldwide are facing issues with air quality, water resources, personal health and well-being, energy use and protection from extreme heat and flooding, the Arbor Day Foundation has launched an unprecedented goal to plant 100 million trees by 2022.