Mayor Rahm Emanuel today announced that the Chicago Department of Streets and Sanitation (DSS) has eliminated the City’s tree trimming request backlog. The Department’s Bureau of Forestry worked diligently to address the backlog, which at its highest point had grown to more than 30,000 requests in 2013.

“I made the commitment to residents to eliminate our tree trimming backlog. This was a service residents wanted and these are the resources they deserve,” said Mayor Emanuel. “Maintaining our urban canopy helps improve the quality of life in our neighborhoods and I want to commend the hard work and dedication of our crews who helped get the job done.”

Crews from DSS’s Bureau of Forestry used management efficiencies and additional resources to trim nearly 57,000 trees in 2016 alone. As of today, all tree trimming requests submitted before November 1, 2016 have been completed.

The Bureau of Forestry utilized routing software to ensure crews were minimizing drive time and maximizing field production. In addition to maximizing time in the field, operational savings resulting from the grid refuse collection system allowed DSS to redirect additional crews to Forestry to help eliminate the backlog.

Also, as part of Mayor Emanuel’s 2015 and 2016 budget, an additional $700,000 was allocated each year for weekend forestry work to further tackle the tree trimming request backlog.

“By managing our department resources more effectively, and working an extra day a week, the Bureau of Forestry had the tools needed to address the thousands of overdue tree trim requests,” added Commissioner Charles L. Williams. “The crews worked zealously to tackle the ongoing tree trimming requests and met the commitment to eliminate the backlog by the end of 2016.”

The Bureau of Forestry officially transitioned to its tree removal season as of November 1. They will continue to focus on tree removal requests until tree trimming season begins again in May of 2017.

For more information on the DSS Bureau of Forestry, call 311 or visit www.cityofchicago.org/streetsandsanitation.

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