ALAMOSA — The City of Alamosa Department of Parks and Recreation and the Alamosa Tree Board have received a $3,000 grant from the XCEL Energy Vegetation Management/Colorado Tree Coalition (CTC) grant program for their Greening Alamosa's Airport Gateway Corridor Under Powerlines Project.

Many visitors to Alamosa fly into the San Luis Valley Regional Airport located on the south end of the city on State Avenue. State Avenue is the main approach to downtown and much of the southern portion is devoid of landscaping. The city and the tree board now have the opportunity to green the corridor on the east side of State Avenue. The trees will eventually have automated watering and; proper species selection will be highlighted by choosing appropriate species to plant under powerlines and species that grow well in our extreme environment.

Students and community volunteers will plant the trees in conjunction with the Department of Parks and Recreation and the Tree Board. Participants in the planting will gain hands on experience in proper planting techniques. Also, Dr. Megan Dudley, a recent graduate in forest pathology from Colorado State University, is developing a tree health presentation and portable display and has offered to present a workshop during Arbor Week. Watch for more details!

The Colorado Tree Coalition awarded nearly $35,000 to 11 organizations in 2017. Along with matching funds provided by the grant recipients this helped plant more than 360 trees in communities across Colorado. Each of these projects allowed residents the opportunity to make a difference in their community with a combined total of 3,117 hours of volunteer service. CTC grants are made possible through the support of the USDA Forest Service, the Colorado State Forest Service, Xcel Energy Foundation, and Xcel Energy Vegetation Management, Colorado Public Radio and our Colorado Tree Coalition members and supporters. Since 1991 the Colorado Tree Coalition has awarded 512 grants totaling over $878,000. These grants have been matched with over $7.9 million in community money and/or time. As a result of these grants over 75,180 trees have been planted throughout the state.