Knoxville Tree Foundation
One of the greatest legacies that can be derived from this plan is a Knoxville Tree Foundation. The Tree Board and others that have been involved in this plan should work to create such an organization. Tree foundations combine the resources and energy of individuals, neighborhoods, businesses, corporations and government to purchase, plant and maintain trees. Foundations can offer creative tree planting programs. Memorial, graduation and other gifts are some of the types of programs that are offered so loved ones can be remembered or a milestone event can be recognized with a tree. In some instances, neighborhoods, business groups or corporations work with the foundation to sponsor tree-planting improvements along roadways.

Most of America’s larger cities have such organizations. Trees Atlanta, the Nashville Tree Foundation and Columbia Green, South Carolina are fine examples. Some foundations, such as Atlanta’s, have a full-time staff. Others, such as Nashville’s, are coordinated through voluntary efforts. Donations can go directly to the organization or through another foundation such as the East Tennessee Foundation. Neighborhood programs, such as the one outlined below, are also important to a tree foundation. In Atlanta, one or two volunteers from selected neighborhoods are trained each year so that a planting and maintenance program can be carried out through other neighborhood volunteers. In Nashville, neighborhood teams composed of several residents, an urban forester or horticulturist and a landscape architect work together to prepare neighborhood tree planting plans.

A Knoxville Tree Foundation has the potential to supplement the tree planting program of the city, adding many more trees to the Knoxville landscape each year.

Grass Roots to Tree Roots Program
The Tree Board (or Foundation) should work with different neighborhoods each year to prepare plans and plant trees along streets or in yards, attending to the following:

• Selection of trees that are on the approved Tree Board list
• Spacing of trees that are appropriate to the species
• A planting and maintenance agreement whereby the neighborhood association will care for the trees
• A plan map that depicts the location of existing trees and trees to be planted

Before the city provides trees to citizens to plant or before citizens plant trees on public spaces, a planting and maintenance plan should be approved by the Tree Board.

In order to facilitate "Grass Roots to Tree Roots,” the following companion programs are recommended:

• Challenge grants whereby a neighborhood’s contribution is matched by the city or the Tree Foundation
• Partnerships with area businesses
• The expansion of Arbor Day activities to include neighborhood tree planting programs

The Grass Roots to Tree Roots program could be part of the Tree Foundation work if that organization is formed. Otherwise, it should be a program of the city and its Tree Board.

Corridor Tree Planting and Landscape Plans
The complexities of initiating tree planting programs along portions of major corridors (Broadway in Fountain City, the Bearden Village area, parts of Chapman Highway) are so significant that special design services will be necessary. The complexities include harsh conditions of extensive paved areas, delineation of where trees can be planted in both public and private spaces, creating consensus with property owners on the locations and types of trees, other improvements that are needed or scheduled (for example, road or sidewalk improvements), creation of alternatives and their cost, and identification of funding sources.

Recommendation:

• As part of the annual tree planting budget, create funding for tree planting/landscape plans for specific areas.
• Use the services of a landscape architect or similarly qualified professional to develop the plan and work with the Tree Board in its design and implementation.

Changes to Knoxville’s Ordinances
In many cases there are limited opportunities to plant in public rights-of-way. Trees that are planted in adjoining yards and parking areas are a practical means to realize the benefits of an urban forest, including beautification, shade and associated cooling, and noise and air pollution control.

To realize those benefits, the following are recommended:

• Update the Tree Protection Ordinance:
  Improve the ways to conserve trees with development, avoiding the “clear-cutting” of the landscape.
• Tree Planting on Nonresidential Property:
  Create code provisions that outline the location, number and species of trees in greater detail. This should include the establishment of planting space, especially in front and side yards, and an appropriate mix of large deciduous trees and native ornamental trees. Provisions for the creation of tree canopy should be examined in creating this ordinance.
• Parking Lot Design:
  Update the standards for planting trees in islands, medians and border areas of parking lots, the ratios of planting areas to parking spaces, the list of appropriate species, and provisions for landscaping with the redevelopment of property.

Tree Conservation
There are many wooded areas along Knoxville’s streets and highways that should be conserved. Their value in terms of buffering neighborhoods, providing wildlife habitat and maintaining air and water quality should be sustained. As part of the implementation program, several approaches should be used.

• Highway Improvements:
  Conservation areas should be set aside as part of the design and development process, or if that is impractical, mitigation measures (for example, planting with the transportation project) should be undertaken.
• Land Development:
  One of the zoning categories that requires site plan review is recommended for conservation areas; additionally, the conservation areas should be referenced as sites to be protected in updating the tree protection ordinance
• Conservation Easements:
  As a proactive strategy, neighborhood or civic groups may wish to work with a conservation organization such as the Knox Land and Water Conservancy to set aside easements to protect woodlands. Typically, the easement is held by the conservation organization and would necessitate the donation or purchase of the development rights to the area that is to be protected. There is also potential for a variation on this program whereby areas currently devoid of trees are donated or purchased to plant trees and expand the urban forest.

Educational Programs
Several measures should be undertaken to better involve students and the general public in tree planting programs. Recognizing that there are numerous possibilities for primary, secondary and college students and neighborhoods to contribute, the following are recommended:

• Development of internships whereby senior level college or graduate students in urban forestry, landscape architecture or ornamental horticulture work with the city and the Tree Board to develop planting plans for specific areas identified in this plan
• Creation of programs at middle and high school levels to plant trees in local communities
• Expansion of Arbor Day activities to include more students and neighborhoods
• Brochures on appropriate planting and maintenance and recommended tree species
• Training programs on planting and maintenance for neighborhood representatives who are leading “grass roots to tree roots” programs

Other Recommendations

• In developing street and highway improvement programs, such as road extensions and increasing the number of lanes, create landscapes/tree-planting plans as part of a design program. The Tree Board should be involved in the review process of improvement plans.
• The city should study insurance programs for its trees and insure them if the costs and benefits are practical. Some cities have been reimbursed several hundred thousand dollars when park and street trees were lost in major storms.
• Overhead utility lines compete with opportunities to beautify street and highway corridors and realize the other benefits of trees. The major thoroughfares, including Broadway, Kingston Pike and Chapman Highway, could be particularly enhanced. As the 21st century unfolds, a program should be established to place utilities underground and plant trees appropriately to recapture the city’s natural beauty.
• In updating Knoxville’s Tree Protection and Ordinance, explore whether the state legislature, as well as City Council, can adopt the ordinance. This provision could help improve tree protection and coordination in landscape improvements with highway planning and development. Mobile, Alabama serves as a model in this regard.

Funding and Tree Supply Sources
In developing the annual tree-planting budget, a committee of the Tree Board, including its ex-officio members, should review tree planting and related grant programs. The following organizations and agencies may be a source for trees or landscape plan assistance:

• The Arbor Day Foundation
• The Tennessee Department of Agriculture, Division of Forestry
• The US Department of Transportation, particularly through the Transportation Efficiency Act Funds (TEA-21): potentially for corridor improvements and air pollution mitigation
• National Tree Trust
• Local foundations