Why parkway trees won't come free this fall in Naperville

Some of the money for parkway tree replacement fell victim to budget cuts this year in Naperville. So starting this fall, residents who need a new tree will have to chip in.

Instead of taking on the full cost of replacing roughly 800 dead parkway trees each year, the city will split the bill halfway with affected homeowners. City officials said such a cost structure already is in use by several suburbs, including two near Naperville: Aurora and Oswego.

"This is a big change in our policy," city council member Judith Brodhead said. "Now it's going to be a cost-sharing program."

The city approved the change by an 8-1 vote Tuesday, with council member John Krummen opposed. The move is estimated to bring in $49,500 this year and $132,000 each year in the future to offset the cost of keeping the city green and maintaining more than 70,000 parkway trees.

"We have a great urban forest and we believe that we should keep that urban forest up," Public Works Director Dick Dublinski said. "We believe that for every tree we take down, we should replace it."

The amount a homeowner must pay this fall for a replacement parkway tree will be $165, which is half the $330 the city is paying on average for each new tree under a contract with The Fields on Caton Farm nursery in Crest Hill. The fee includes delivery and planting, which council member Patty Gustin said makes it worthwhile.

Participating in the cost-share will not be mandatory this year, Dublinski said. So if a homeowner's parkway tree dies and he or she does not want to replace it, that will be OK. Dublinski said this happens so far in about 10 percent of cases.

"They don't even want a free tree in their yard," he said.

Dublinski said he plans to track the number of refusals this fall, then report to the council next year about whether the program should be made mandatory.

Earlier this year, as the city aimed to cut costs to keep its property tax levy relatively flat, the budget for tree replacement was cut from $80,000 to $40,000. Dublinski projects the city can replace 121 trees with that amount of funding.

These trees will join others planted at new developments, along arterial streets or to replace those affected by the Emerald Ash Borer, giving the city a total of 1,346 new trees this year.