By: Andy Kozlowski | Madison-Park News | Published March 14, 2025
HAZEL PARK — The city of Hazel Park has been awarded “Tree City USA” status through the Arbor Day Foundation, a reflection of ongoing efforts to preserve its tree canopy.
“We’re very pleased,” said Hazel Park Mayor Mike Webb. “It’s a great opportunity for our city to be a bit more green and eco-friendly. Our residents and staff worked very hard on this.”
The last time that Hazel Park was certified as a Tree City was in 1999. The development is the result of a partnership with the Michigan Department of Natural Resources, bringing Hazel Park in line with other Tree Cities such as Madison Heights, Ferndale, Royal Oak, Berkley and Birmingham.
The call to action began in late 2023, when a group of residents raised concerns about the city cutting down trees for its sidewalk replacement program. A petition was posted to change.org with the title “Stop Hazel Park’s Sidewalk Replacement Project and Save Our Environment.”
After a series of public and private meetings where residents shared their views, the city began working with residents to address the matter. Since January 2024, the Hazel Park Department of Public Works has secured a grant from the DNR that will plant more than 280 new trees around town — the most the city has ever committed to planting.
That same DNR grant is also funding the city’s first tree inventory since 1998. In recent weeks, certified arborists have been inspecting and mapping trees in the city’s parks and right of way.
That effort is led by Davey Resource Group, Inc. Nearly 5,500 trees are being assessed by arborists using handheld computers to mark locations and record specific details — valuable field data that will help the city develop plans for continued maintenance of the canopy.
Along with the DNR grant, the city has also received a habitat restoration grant from Oakland County for the purpose of planting several dozen more trees in the parks.
Hazel Park’s approach to thinking about trees has also changed. The citizen-led Beautification Commission was rebooted and created a subcommittee focused on trees.
Separately, the city has launched the Hazel Park Tree Board, established by municipal code, comprising the DPW supervisor, city manager and city attorney, as well as three residents. One of them is Evan Little, an arborist certified in Tree Risk Assessment Qualification, or TRAQ, a program managed by the International Society of Arboriculture.
Little said the canopy “can definitely be improved,” and he would like to see regular meetings with city staff to better manage Hazel Park’s trees.
“Currently, there’s an outside contractor that is responsible for determining tree removals, based on possible diseases and lifting up sidewalks. We should probably move that service in-house to the city. Personally, I haven’t seen a diseased tree since I moved here, and I don’t think it’s ethical to have a larger company making these decisions since they could be padding their own pockets,” Little said. “I’d like to see members of our city staff become certified in tree risk assessments so that they can make these determinations themselves. A full tree removal might not always be necessary — there could be other risk mitigation options.”
The DPW has also been provided a list of tree species recommended by the DNR and Oakland County for growing the canopy while minimizing danger to residents and property. The city ultimately decides what kinds of trees to plant, and where.
Public transparency regarding the tree canopy has been another focus. At www.hazelpark.org, click “Public Works” under the “Departments” tab, and then click “City Tree Planting Program” to access a map of Hazel Park divided into 12 sections, with details such as the number of tree removals, trimmings and plantings.
“We want people in the community to feel more involved, and the transparency form is one way to do that. It’s a user-friendly page, and we’re trying to keep it up to date,” Webb said. “Our tree efforts are a long-term venture. Sometimes you have to cull old trees to put new trees in, but you do it in a very conscientious way.”
The baseline criteria for eligibility as a Tree City includes the establishment of a tree board and public tree care ordinance, as well as a forestry program and Arbor Day observance and proclamation from the mayor. Along with all of the other efforts, the city’s new status was secured.
According to Lawrence Law, coordinator at DNR’s Urban and Community Forestry program, the data that Hazel Park stands to gain through its inventory efforts will prove invaluable.
“Trees are something you plan for 10-20 years in the future since they work on timeframes longer than the annual municipal cycle, so the (DNR) grant is to assist Hazel Park, which has been identified as an underserved community, in ‘raising the floor’ and fostering the interest of active management of city trees,” Law said via email. “Trees are usually afterthoughts when they should be considered the same way as we do any other sort of infrastructure project, like sidewalks and roads.
“Hazel Park applying for and receiving (Tree City) certification hopefully continues indefinitely, and more interest in active management grows throughout the community,” he added. “I’m proud of the community and city for reigniting interest in Hazel Park’s trees. The work being done is not over, but what is being done sets the foundation for a legacy that will hopefully last 100 years.”