On Saturday, community members and city officials gathered together to celebrate something that is prevalent across the city of San Luis Obispo— trees.
City representatives organized its annual Arbor Day Celebration at the Sinsheimer Park Safety Railroad Trail, where attendees enjoyed vendor booths and planted trees.
Organizers also say that some people were able to take 1-gallon trees home to plant themselves.
“We have a lot of challenges to our urban forestry canopy, and part of it is making sure we are planting the next generation of trees and also [maintaining] what we have," Walter Gault, the Urban Forestry Program coordinator and city arborist, told KSBY. "It is important to have days like this to engage the community and remind them of the importance [of] educating people about trees and introducing them to new species that are well tailored to the urban environment."
City officials say they're celebrating over four decades of San Luis Obispo being a Tree City U.S.A.— a national designation that means the city meets a high standard of sound urban forestry management.