Algonquin Named 'Tree City USA' For 18th Year

“Everyone benefits when elected officials, volunteers, and committed citizens in communities like Algonquin make smart investments in urban forests,” said John Rosenow, chief executive and founder of the Arbor Day Foundation. “Residents of Algonquin ought to be proud to live in a community that makes the planting and care of trees a priority.”

The Tree City USA program is sponsored by the Arbor Day Foundation in cooperation with the National Association of State Foresters and the USDA Forest Service. 

“We are always grateful to be recognized for the quality of our urban forestry program,” stated John Schmitt, Village President.  “Algonquin’s tree-lined streets add significantly to the quality of life in our Village.”

Algonquin has met the four standards to become a Tree City USA community. Tree City USA communities must have a tree board or department, a tree-care ordinance, a community forestry program with annual expenditures of at least $2.00 per capita, and an Arbor Day observance and proclamation.

To help celebrate Arbor Day on Friday, April 25, staff from the Village’s Parks and Forestry Division will visit Neubert, Algonquin Lakes, Westfield Community, and Eastview Schools in Algonquin to teach students about the history of Arbor Day and the benefits of trees.  Students will be given a tree seedling to plant at home.   Additionally, Parks and Forestry Division staff will plant a tree at Eastview Elementary this year. 

More information about Tree City USA can be found at www.arborday.org/TreeCityUSA.  Further information about the Village of Algonquin Parks and Forestry Division is available at www.algonquin.org/publicworks.