City of Trees: Merriam partners with Bridging the Gap to provide free trees for residents

Merriam residents can now volunteer to have a free tree planted in their front yard starting at the end of the month thanks to the city council’s vote at its Jan. 23 meeting.

Merriam recently partnered with Heartland Tree Alliance – a branch of Bridging the Gap, a local nonprofit that focuses on “connecting the environment, economy and community.”

“The vote was unanimous,” Merriam Mayor Bob Pape said. “To me, it’s a no-brainer to take advantage of the program.”

The program includes a $50,000 grant given by the city to allow Heartland Tree Alliance to purchase and plant trees for 85 residents.

A registration form will be posted later this month on Bridging the Gap’s website for residents to fill out, asking basic questions from tree variety to placement in their yard. Tree options include eastern redbuds, northern red oaks and shingle oaks.

Staff members of the Heartland Tree Alliance will conduct an in-person evaluation to confirm if the yard is a good fit for the chosen tree species.

A team of volunteers and staff members will begin planting the trees for free in early May. The organization will also provide information to residents on how to take care of their tree for the next few years.

One goal of this program is to improve the “tree canopy” that is formed over Merriam’s streets according to Pape. A tree canopy consists of all the tree branches together and how much shade they can produce, which is important for cooling down the gray infrastructure in a city such as streets, roads, sidewalks and homes. 

Program Manager at Heartland Tree Alliance Joe Wheelock is concerned about the rise in gray infrastructure in Kansas City.

“[Gray infrastructure] gathers a lot of heat and absorbs light so it gets really hot,” Wheeler said. “When it’s 90 degrees outside, on your sidewalk it may be 120 degrees or 130 just baking in the sun. Having a dense tree canopy helps to shade and cool down those spots.”

Having an adequate tree canopy over a resident’s home can lower heating bills as the shade provides a natural cooling effect.

Although this program is not currently being offered in the East area, Environmental Club and freshman Shubra Durgavathi says she’d jump at the chance to work with Heartland Tree Alliance if they partnered with her neighborhood.

“I’d love to be involved,” Durgavathi said. “I’ve always been interested in helping the environment, and this program is something huge that would definitely help the environment.”

Pape hopes that Merriam’s partnership with Bridging the Gap will inspire other nearby cities to follow in their footsteps.

“I hope that it catches on and that more communities can start taking advantage of this opportunity to provide trees to their city,” Pape said. “We’re trying to be environmentally conscious and take care of the environment for generations to come.”