Urban planners and city administrators face daily chal-
lenges in managing complex urban environments,
such as maintaining sufficient levels of clean water,
clean air, energy, housing, and green spaces, as well
as addressing conflicts of interest related to land
use. More than ever, local leaders must rise to the
challenge of ensuring that their cities are econom-
ically, socially, and environmentally sustainable.
Well-designed and managed urban forests are integral
to meeting this challenge, and municipal arborists and
urban foresters can make significant contributions to
the sustainable development, economic viability, and
livability of cities. In our urban environments, healthy
and thriving trees, woodlands, and parks require
careful planning, design, and management to achieve
their full economic, social, and ecological potential.
We have created a new "primer" for strategic plan-
ning that we believe supports local government in
more fully integrating trees and urban forests as
assets to achieving sustainable communities. The
purpose of this publication titled: Urban Forest
Management: A Primer to Strategic Planning for
Municipal Governments is to assist local planners and
managers in the initiation, or redesign, of an urban
forest management program. It was initially devel-
oped for use in the State of Florida but we believe
this framework can be applied universally. This article
lays out the basics and introduces the new tool.
Practical and quantifiable steps
A strategic plan for urban forest management iden-
tifies a series of practical and quantifiable steps that
guide activities and resources for responsible agen-
cies and partners to accomplish key outcomes over
time. By establishing clear lines of responsibility and
measurable objectives tied to reasonable timelines,
a city can measure successes and identify program
areas in need of further attention. The plan itself is
best seen as a long-term process, a living and adapt-
able plan of action, and not a static product.
Our experience suggests that in the current environ-
ment, urban forest management tends to involve
short-term decision-making reacting to immediate
needs (safety, tree hazards, etc.), principally driven by
rapid land-use change and local economic concerns. It
tends to address the symptoms of the problem rather
than the problem itself (reactive vs. proactive). As
a result, decisions and actions are often redundant,
inefficient, and sometimes have to be completely
redone as other priorities are identified later. What is
needed is a longer-term perspective that puts forest
management within the broader context of the city's
infrastructure and does not leave it as an afterthought.
From the USDA Forest Service and Partners
Planning for Urban Forest
Management: A New
Primer for Local Action
by Robert J. Northrop, Extension Forester, University of Florida
IFAS; Michael G. Andreu, Associate Professor-Forest Systems
and Extension Specialist, University of Florida IFAS; and Wayne
Zipperer, Research Forester at U.S. Forest Service
36 CityTREES
