Lincolnshire wants to add some green with free trees

Lincolnshire officials are considering giving away trees that would be planted on private property -- but a local nature expert isn't sold on the plan.

The program would allow residents to adopt young trees from the village at no cost. Homeowners would pledge to water and prune the trees, make them available for inspection and meet other requirements.

Money for the trees would come from an existing fund financed by developers and homeowners who remove trees. That fund contained about $26,000 as of last month, Village Manager Bob Irvin said.

A budget has not been determined. The trees could cost $250 to $300 each, Irvin said.

If approved, the effort could launch in spring 2008.

The effort could be the next step in the town's effort to beautify Lincolnshire, improve the environment and take steps to limit arboreal calamities caused by disease or storms, officials said.

"Why wait for something to happen and then you have to reforest?" Mayor Brett Blomberg said. "We suspect that the village will embrace this program, and we'll see if we can make it grow."

Despite the village's good intentions, Lake County Forest Preserve District Executive Director Tom Hahn is hesitant to endorse the plan.

Hahn, whose district plants 1,500 to 2,000 trees a year on public land, expressed concern about how the program's restrictions would be enforced, as well as the greater issue of using public money for private benefit.

If village leaders want to improve the environment, they probably could simply plant more trees on public land for everyone's enjoyment, he said.

They could also consider allowing residents to buy trees for public parkways at a discounted price, Hahn said. Gurnee, Libertyville and other villages do that.

Hahn and Lincolnshire officials were unaware of any municipal agencies that donate trees for private land.

Lincolnshire already uses money from its tree fund to plant trees on public parkways in front of homes and in local parks.

Residents would have to qualify for the new program. Priority consideration would be given to properties that are treeless, already have well-maintained landscaping or meet other criteria.

Under the proposed rules, applicants could get up to three trees during a five-year period, and typically not more than one a year.

The Lincolnshire board could approve the program at its next meeting, set for 7 p.m. Oct. 8 at village hall.