– As Part of the Initiative to Double the Green on Miami-Dade Streets –
Miami Beach residents are known for their deeply rooted love for trees and a greener, lush environment. Thanks to Miami-Dade County and the Neat Streets Miami, which leverages local resources to enhance the urban forest, North Beach will soon have more trees to enjoy! Neat Streets Miami awarded the City of Miami Beach a Street Tree Matching Grant in the amount of $25,000 for its 2018 Hawthorne Avenue Reforestation Project. In its third year, Neat Streets Miami’s street tree program awarded 14 organizations matching grants to advance the Million Trees Miami initiative, a community-wide effort to plant one million trees by 2020.
“The Street Tree Matching Grant allows Miami-Dade County to leverage its funds strategically in order to plant trees along our streets through partnerships with our municipalities and community organizations,” said Miami-Dade County District 9 Commissioner Dennis C. Moss. “By incentivizing our partners to plant in underserved neighborhoods with low tree canopy, we are able to plant in neighborhoods that need these trees the most.”
There are many benefits that come with having a prosperous urban canopy. It has been found that when sitting under a tree, the temperature can feel up to 35 degrees cooler. The benefits don’t stop there – trees also help intercept thousands of gallons of urban stormwater runoff, reduce CO2 conserve electricity, and help improve your health.
“Hurricane Irma resulted in the loss of precious canopy within Miami Beach and we are grateful for the funds from Neat Streets Miami to help restore our urban forest,” said City Manager, Jimmy L. Morales. “As part of this project, the city will plant dozens of trees to beautify the North Beach neighborhood and invite residents to help with ensuring their survival through supplemental watering.”
Tree species will include Simpson Stoppers (Myrcianthes fragrans), Wild Tamarinds (Lysiloma bahamensis), Gumbo Limbos (Bursera simaruba), Green Buttonwoods (Conocarpus erectus), and several other Florida-friendly tree species to provide shade and beautify their community.
Made possible through the County’s Tree Trust Fund, preference was given to areas with low tree canopy and low-to-moderate income populations, in an attempt to achieve at least 20 percent tree canopy coverage (Miami-Dade County’s average) in all neighborhoods. The 2018 grant funding totals $250,000, a 20 percent increase from last year.
