Tree Board

The Chelsea Tree Board began in 2005 when Chelsea was awarded the "Tree City Award."   Today, under the Interim City Manager Ned Keefe the Tree Board is composed of five members each serving three year terms. The Tree Board meets on a monthly basis on the second Tuesday of every month at 6:00 p.m. at the public library. Please contact Cate Fox-Lent if you have any questions.

The Tree Board's greatest mission is to increase tree coverage, it now stands at 2%.
The ideas generated by the session fall, for the most part, into four related categories:  maintaining, education, communication, and advocacy.  Maintenance;  selecting , acquiring, planting, watering, pruning, and removing trees.

  • Education: Making the citizenry aware of the roles trees play in our urban environment.
  • Communication: The exchange of ideas and information about trees and urban arboriculture among the city's stakeholders.  The knowledge and practice of everything that has to do with trees.
  • Advocacy: supporting the case for trees in Chelsea.

The Tree board has identified tasks that reflect its defining mission, and serve to promote the protection, planting and care of Chelsea's Urban Canopy:

  1. Develop effective communication mechanisms through social media and the City’s website.
  2. Develop Community engage activities around trees, such as adopt-a-tree programs, with an eye toward implementing such programs in schools, neighborhoods, businesses and social organizations.
  3. Expand social activities with schools to encourage education and engagement around trees, such as annual field trips to Arnold Arboretum.
  4. Identify ways to support existing efforts to "green' Chelsea: in particular supporting community and youth street-tree planting programs.
  5. Begin building relationships with other city departments, e.g. the Department of Public Works and the Zoning Board.

Board Members
Name Membership
Diane Paxton Member
Fidel Maltez Member
David Vencis Member

Staff Contacts
Name Title
Cate Fox-Lent DPW Commissioner

Additional Information