Trees Atlanta plants hundreds of trees on the city’s westside

ATLANTA, Ga. — Atlanta is known as the city in the forest, but with more people moving in, the canopy is disappearing.

Channel 2′s Steve Gehlbach introduces one local nonprofit and explains how Trees Atlanta is setting new roots on the city’s westside.

Trees Atlanta says it has a mission to plant, protect, and educate on the importance of trees and they are almost ready to move into their brand new headquarters.

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Co-Executive Director Greg Levine said they picked the site on Warner Street, next to the Westside Beltline, long abandoned and barren, lacking near any trees.

“We really need to expand that mission and do more work,” said Levine.

Last Saturday, thanks to many volunteers, they finished most of the landscaping in one day. Over 200 trees were planted on roughly three acres, which was around 60 trees per acre. There were also hundred of native shrubs and more than 1,500 perennials.

They hope to restore the canopy here to 50% within the next decade. Currently it’s only three to five percent from one giant red oak on the edge of the property and one they really wanted to save.

It’s about 40″ around and 150 years old.

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“It’s a great tree and obviously Trees Atlanta wants to have a significant tree. Did everything we could to protect it,” said Levine.

The building itself is expected to be ready mid-December. It will be named Trees Atlanta Kendeta Tree House, after the foundation’s biggest donor.

It will include offices, an educational area and community space, as well as home to other environmental nonprofits including The Conservation Fund, Georgia Audubon and The Nature Conservancy in Georgia.

The site is also an example and inspiration that you can re-forest and transform any area, even the middle of the city.

“We want to set a little higher expectation for all this industrial development, so neighborhood can get some canopy back,” said Levine.

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