PRESS RELEASE - SF’s Arbor Day Festivities Kick Off with Big Community Tree Planting on Saturday And The City’s Signature Tree Planting on Monday to Honor Lawrence Ferlinghetti - 3/14/2019
For immediate release:
March 14, 2019
Contact: Rachel Gordon, 415-554-6045
SF’s Arbor Day Festivities Kick Off with Big Community Tree Planting on Saturday And The City’s Signature Tree Planting on Monday to Honor Lawrence Ferlinghetti
San Francisco, CA – Public Works will kick off the 2019 Arbor Day celebrations on Saturday, March 16, 2019, with a Community Clean Team event where volunteers will join Supervisor Ahsha Safaí and City crews to plant 140 street trees in the Excelsior, Crocker-Amazon and other District 11 neighborhoods.
Also on tap Saturday is the annual Eco Fair, a free festival featuring family-fun activities, including planter box building and planting, bucket truck rides, face painting, a friendly herd of grazing goats and more!
Two days later, on Monday, March 18, 2019, Public Works welcomes the community to the planting of The City’s annual signature tree in North Beach. This year’s honoree is Lawrence Ferlinghetti, the celebrated poet, publisher and activist who co-founded the City Lights bookstore and publishing house. Ferlinghetti turns 100 years old this month.
Event Details:
The Community Clean Team kickoff and Eco Fair is on Saturday, March 16, 2019, at James Denman Middle School, 241 Oneida Ave. Meet at the back parking lot, 240 Seneca Ave. Registration for Community Clean Team starts at 8:30 a.m. The Eco Fair will run from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. The signature tree ceremony is set for 10 a.m. Monday, March 18, 576 Union St., across the street from Via Ferlinghetti.
“Arbor Day, celebrated nationally and around the world, is a time to focus on trees and the contributions they make to beautifying neighborhoods and improving the environment,” said San Francisco Public Works Director Mohammed Nuru. “We are proud to participate this year by growing our urban forest and paying tribute to one of the world’s great poets.”
Every year, Public Works plants a signature tree as a living tribute to civic leaders, community advocates, artists and local activists for their dedication and devotion to their communities. The Ferlinghetti signature tree will be an olive tree, a symbol of peace and friendship.
Past honorees of Public Works signature trees include Dr. Espanola Jackson; Irene Crescio; the Brown twin sisters, Marian and Vivian; Nelson Mandela; Sandra Cuadra; Wangari Maathai; Charlie Starbuck; Rosa Parks; Cesar Chavez; Ruth Asawa; Dr. Ellen Wolf; Dana Woldow; Rose Pak; and Mayor Edwin Mah Lee.
This is the 147th anniversary of Arbor Day – a tribute to trees and the beauty and environmental benefits they bestow. Public Works is the steward of San Francisco’s 125,000-plus street trees under the voter-approved StreetTreeSF program.
Press Releases
Release Date
Thursday, March 14, 2019
Mission
San Francisco Public Works is one of the largest and most complex municipal operations in the City, with a 1,600-member workforce and a $384 million annual operating budget. The department's active capital project portfolio exceeds $3 billion. As one of San Francisco oldest City departments, it is also one of the most forward-thinking. Keeping San Francisco beautiful, safe and sustainable.
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