About the healthy tree canopy grants
Hennepin County has grants available to cities, affordable housing properties, schools, and non-profit organizations to enhance the county’s tree canopy.
The goals of the program are to combat threats to trees from invasive insects and disease by funding tree planting, educate the public on tree care and the importance of trees, and increase the diversity and resiliency of the tree canopy.
Types of grants available
Different types of grants are available to cities, affordable housing properties, and schools and non-profit organizations.
See the Healthy Tree Canopy grants flyer (PDF) to learn more about the difference between the grant types.
Cities
Two types of grants are offered:
- Step 1: For cities with no tree inventory or an incomplete tree inventory. Grants are only to complete tree inventories. Grants of $1,000 to $5,000 are available, and a 25% match is required.
- Step 2: For cities that have a completed tree inventory and a have a MN DNR certified tree inspector or an ISA-certified arborist under contract for the proposed grant project. Grants are to implement tree plantings, maintain newly planted trees, remove and replace ash trees, conduct outreach, develop gravel-bed nurseries and develop tree management plans. Grants of $10,000 to $50,000 are available, and a 25% match is required.
See the healthy tree canopy grant guidelines for cities (PDF) for more information.
Affordable housing
Grants are for ash tree removals and planting replacement trees on affordable housing properties.
Grants are available to new and existing affordable housing properties. Eligible applicants include owners and managers of existing affordable multifamily housing, developers of new affordable multifamily housing, and affordable housing land trusts.
Grants of a minimum of $5,000 up to a maximum of $20,000 are available. A 25% match of the granted amount is required.
See the healthy tree canopy grant guidelines for affordable housing properties (PDF) for more information.
Schools and nonprofit organizations
Grants are for tree plantings on school or community properties, tree-related education, tree inventories, ash tree removals, and Arbor Day celebrations.
Eligible applications include charter, private, and public schools in Hennepin County. Eligible applicants include administrators, teachers, principals, and facility managers of existing schools. Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations are also eligible to apply.
Grants of a minimum of $1,000 up to a maximum of $10,000 are available. A 25% match is required for ash tree removals. No match required for other expenses.
See the healthy tree canopy grant guidelines for schools and nonprofit organizations (PDF) for more information.
How to apply
Applications materials may be accessed and must be submitted through the online Supplier Portal.
Applications for cities and affordable housing providers are due by 3 p.m. on Thursday, August 15. Applications for schools and nonprofit organizations are due by 3 p.m. on Monday, October 28.
To access the RFP and apply:
- Visit the Supplier Portal.
- View the application materials by selecting the healthy tree canopy grant under events applicable to your organization.
You need to be registered to submit an application. For detailed instructions on how to register and submit an application, including video tutorials and more, visit the Supplier Portal information page.
Contact us for help with your grant project
Hennepin County foresters are available to help you develop projects and answer any questions related to the grant and application process. Potential applicants are strongly encouraged to contact the forestry team at trees@hennepin.us before applying.
Helpful grant resources
The following resources will be helpful in completing your grant application.
Tree planting priority areas map
The county’s tree planting priorities map factors in both environmental and demographic data. The map uses land cover data and disparity data such as income, housing, and health to understand areas that have lower tree canopy and higher need.
Grant selection will be based, in part, on a comparison of the project locations with the identified priority planting areas.
Recommended tree list
Use the county’s recommended tree list (XLSX) when developing a planting plan.
The list includes a list of species and notes about their suitability for planting in various locations. A do not plant list is also included.
Grants awarded February 2019
In February 2019, the county awarded 27 grants totaling more than $250,000. The grants will no only invest in the county's tree canopy, but also the health and economic vitality of communities.
Cities
The following cities were awarded funding to start or complete an inventory of public trees, a step that can help with tree planning, planting, removal, and maintenance:
- Hopkins: $5,000 to perform a public tree inventory that will include all species in the central Hopkins residential area and an ash tree inventory in all other areas of the city.
- Orono: $5,000 to inventory all trees within city parks managed by the city.
- Osseo: $4,000 to collect data on all trees located within the city's right-of-way and on public property.
- St. Bonifacius: $3,750 to inventory all ash trees within city limits.
- Tonka Bay: $2,000 to gather tree information on all public lands within its jurisdiction.
The following cities with existing tree inventory data were awarded funding for projects to improve their tree canopies:
- Brooklyn Park: $33,462 to update their tree inventory to determine locations of ash trees, develop boulevard tree replacement plan, plant 40 trees in Hamilton Park with volunteers, create a new gravel-bed nursery, and fund staff training.
- Champlin: $9,996 to plant trees in medians at the Elm Creek Parkway and Goose Lake Parkway intersection and along Jefferson Highway. The trees will replace ash trees that were removed.
- Eden Prairie: $30,517 to purchase about 300 trees to replace ash trees, treat 375 high quality ash trees, and assist in the removal of 279 public ash trees by funding stump removal equipment.
- Robbinsdale: $14,000 to update the existing citywide public tree inventory that includes all public trees (streets, landscapes and parks) as well as trees along Hennepin County Road 81. The updated data will help the city more successfully manage a community forest of approximately 5,000 trees.
- St. Louis Park: $10,000 to plant 70 trees in Aquila Park with volunteers. The tree planting will be a component of a larger community Arbor Day celebration.
Affordable housing
The following organizations will use funding to plant trees on their property and proactively manage ash trees:
- City of Edina: $12,400 to work in partnership with three land trust homeowners to remove five large ash trees on West Hennepin Affordable Land Trust-owned lots. Five trees will be planted in their place.
- City of Lakes Community Land Trust (Minneapolis): $19,200 to increase tree species diversity through its current and future single-family home rehab and new construction projects (12 projects in progress currently). The land trust will also engage the community through tree planting events.
- Newport Midwest - The Mariner (Minnetonka): $20,000 to plant 23 trees around the building of a new mixed-income housing development adjacent to Southwest Light Rail Transit Opus Station Stop in Minnetonka. The trees will provide more green space and go above and beyond the city requirements.
- RLBC Franklin Station, LLC on behalf of Red Lake Band of Chippewa Indians (Minneapolis): $20,000 to plant 27 trees to add aesthetic and environmental benefits to the existing site and provide a buffer between the Hiawatha Light Rail line and the development. This is a new, 109-unit, 100 percent affordable housing development in south Minneapolis.
- Twin Cities Housing Development Corporation (Minneapolis): $20,000 to remove and replace ash trees with other species that will thrive in the urban environment at Seven Spruce and Phillips Place, two older affordable housing developments in south Minneapolis. Both sites have large ash trees that have shown signs of emerald ash borer damage.
Schools and nonprofit organizations
The following organizations will engage youth in learning about and planting trees:
- Lucy Craft Laney School (Minneapolis): $4,994 to plant trees to replace ash trees and provide shade near the playground.
- Orono High School: $2,500 for the high school biology class to plant an apple orchard on Earth Day.
- Prairie Seeds Academy (Brooklyn Park): $2,105 for a fruit tree orchard that Kindergarten through fifth grade classes will help plant, plant, and maintain.
- Richfield Public School District: $4,766 for Arbor Day tree plantings with environmental clubs at seven buildings.
- Saint John the Baptist Catholic Montessori School (Excelsior): $1,880 for a fruit tree orchard that students will help plan, plant and maintain.
- School of Engineering and Arts (Golden Valley): $4,510 for a fruit tree orchard that students will plant and to incorporate forestry into the curriculum.
- Success Academy (Bloomington): $4,952 for a tree planting, Arbor Day celebration, and tree-related curriculum.
- SPARK-Y (Minneapolis): $1,612 to plant an apple orchard at Roosevelt High School with the Roosevelt Urban Farming group and hold a school-wide Arbor Day celebration.
- Tree Trust/FAIR Pilgrim Lane School (Plymouth): $5,000 for a all-school tree planting day.
- Weaver Lake Elementary (Maple Grove): $2,599 to engage fifth in planting trees and to incorporate forestry into the curriculum.
- Whittier International Elementary (Minneapolis): $3,900 to hold an Arbor Day celebration in which students will help with planning, planting, and watering.
- YMCA Camp Christmas Tree (Minnetrista): $5,000 to work with 100 volunteers to remove invasive plants and to plant trees. Campers will help take care of the trees during summer camp session.
Grant program updates
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