June 5, 2026
Transportation and Environment Committee
City of San José
200 East Santa Clara Street
San José, CA 95113
Re: Item (d)1 – Community Forest Management Plan and Urban Forestry Annual Report Dear Chair and Members of the Transportation and Environment Committee:
On behalf of Our City Forest, I want to thank the City of San José, the Department of Transportation, the Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services, the Mayor, and the City Council for your continued partnership in advancing San José’s climate and urban forestry goals.
We are especially grateful that the Mayor’s June Budget Message includes funding to continue the City’s office lease support for Our City Forest, and we want to thank Councilmember and Transportation and Environment Committee Chair David Cohen and his team for championing this request. Our office and operations space supports our fleet, planting materials, nursery coordination, AmeriCorps and California Climate Action Corps members, volunteers, and staff needed to deliver tree planting, young tree care, community engagement, workforce training, and stewardship services across San José. We appreciate the Mayor and Council’s recognition that this infrastructure is essential to the City’s broader urban forestry work.
Our City Forest is marking its 32nd year supporting San José’s urban forest and the many stakeholders who make this work possible, including public agencies, schools, residents, businesses, community groups, and volunteers. Since our founding, OCF has engaged more than 150,000 community volunteers and raised more than $32 million in non-City funding to support urban forestry in San José. We have planted trees in every zip code across the City, planted more than 80,000 trees, conserved millions of gallons of water annually through lawn conversions, and trained more than 650 AmeriCorps service members to support and sustain this work.
OCF’s work includes fund development, technical assistance, and grant administration. Our Community Nursery and Training Center in San José remains a valuable community resource, with a full cultivation operation for trees and shrubs, while also serving as a hub for greening resources and volunteer opportunities.
For FY 2025–2026, OCF has reached its annual planting goal of 1,765 trees, supported by a mix of federal funding that is currently at risk, state funding that has now expired, county funding, City fee-for-service sources, and private donations. Of the 2,013 trees referenced in this item memo, City funding supports approximately 300 trees annually, while OCF leverages outside funding and community partnerships to deliver the broader scope of San José’s urban forestry work. Community engagement remains central to this model, with more than 2,500 volunteers contributing over 7,500 service hours in FY 2025–2026.
At the same time, OCF is navigating significant financial uncertainty. Unaddressed inflation impacts over many years, decreased financial support from the City since 2016, and recent federal revenue cuts continue to reduce service capacity and limit growth. Through federal funding that is currently at risk, OCF has operated the nation’s first AmeriCorps program dedicated to urban forestry, providing workforce training for more than 18 years to generations of environmental stewards and community leaders.
OCF is currently using organizational reserves to sustain current service levels and is facing a significant revenue shortfall at year-end. To address this challenge, OCF continues to reach out to existing partners, including the City of San José, for increased support to maintain program continuity for next year.
These challenges come at a critical moment for San José’s urban forest. If the City is serious about meeting its canopy goals, including the long-term goal of reaching 20 percent canopy coverage by 2051, San José will need stable implementation capacity, sustained stewardship, stronger coordination, stronger protections for mature trees, and continued investment in partners that are already delivering results on the ground.
We are grateful for the City’s partnership and for the proposed continuation of office lease support. We look forward to working collaboratively with the City to ensure that San José’s urban forestry goals are not only reported, but achieved.
Sincerely,
Rhonda Berry
President & CEO, Our City Forest
www.ourcityforest.org