Tree-preservation advocates won a round in Arlington County Manager Mark Schwartz’s proposed fiscal 2025 budget, which includes an additional $1 million for tree matters in the county.
“That is not going out and planting $1 million worth of new trees in the next week,” Schwartz said at the Feb. 24 County Board meeting. “It is really [to support] our tree-maintenance program – so we actually have a reliable program.”
The extra funding is not a sure bet, although it is a relatively pittance in the grand scheme of a $1.62 billion spending package – and should gratify tree activists, who frequently in recent years have been at loggerheads with county-government officials.
Arlington’s 26 square miles contain an estimated 750,000 trees, or about three trees for every resident.
