Even before October's snowstorm caused severe damage to trees in most area communities, Amherst officials were undertaking an aggressive plan to plant more shade trees along the town's rights-of-way.

A proposed three-year, $632,000 capital plan for purchasing, planting and maintaining 2,000 trees could be brought before Town Meeting in the spring.

"It was something we've realized for quite a while," said Department of Public Works Superintendent Guilford Mooring. "We've known we need to replenish trees, and the storm just made the situation a little worse."

In each of the last two years, Amherst's capital budget has included $12,500 for tree replacement, money that has not yet been spent but is expected to be used when planting season arrives.

"We will start planting regardless this spring," said Alan Snow, the tree warden and DPW division director for parks and grounds.

Like Amherst, Northampton was hit hard by the Halloween weekend snowstorm, prompting the city to revise its schedule for getting new trees into the ground.

"The Department of Public Works plans to move up its usual autumn tree planting to the spring and to plant 40 to 50 new trees," said Northampton Mayor David J. Narkewicz.

The city will also plant trees in the fall as funding allows, Narkewicz said.

Northampton DPW Superintendent Ned Huntley said the city annually has about $10,000 in what is known as the green fund, money that comes out of the solid waste enterprise fund. That money is typically used to purchase new trees for planting and to give out small trees, known as whips, to residents on Arbor Day, Huntley said.

He said there are no plans for taking additional money from the general fund for trees.

In Easthampton, DPW Superintendent Joseph Pipczynski said there remains "a very, very limited budget" for buying and planting new public shade trees. But Pipczynski estimates that only about a dozen city trees were lost during the storm, with the majority of damage caused by falling limbs.

Amherst Town Manager John Musante has emphasized tree planting as a way of making the town a greener community. The capital plan being developed will help Amherst replace trees that have been lost over the last two decades, he said.

Snow said the town needs to plant the right trees in the right locations, and then needs to maintain them so they can reach maturity. "For street trees, this will go a long way to help fill some of those gaps," Snow said.

If Amherst wins a green community designation from the state, Musante said, it might qualify the town for grants to purchase trees.

Cleanup winding down

Officials of area cities and towns say they now have a sense of how the storm cleanup will impact budgets.

Huntley said Northampton has spent about $50,000 on the work, and did not hire any private contractors. The city owns three chipping trucks.

"We did all the work ourselves because we weren't sure if FEMA would reimburse for the cleanup," Huntley said.

Northampton also opened up the landfill to receive residential wood waste. The city is seeking a contractor to chip this debris.

Pipczynski said a $50,000 supplemental appropriation allowed Easthampton to hire a contractor to work alongside DPW employees.

During the first two weeks of January workers removed the last of the so-called hangers, branches and limbs that had broken off but remained stuck in the trees.

There is close to 40,000 yards of brush to dispose of, which could add another $50,000 to $75,000 to the total cost of the cleanup. Pipczynski said it is unclear how it will be paid for. Of the debris, 8,500 yards considered city tree waste is piled off Park Street, and 30,000 yards consisting of residential debris is in a pile adjacent to the Oliver Street landfill.

Mooring said Amherst spent $393,000 clearing public debris. The town did the work in conjunction with Wagner Wood of Amherst.

Private efforts

Private parks, much like municipal and residential property, were also affected by the October storm. Childs Park in Northampton was especially hard hit and for several weeks was closed to the public because of safety concerns.

The timing of the storm couldn't have been worse, said David Murphy, president of The Childs Park Foundation, as the season had ended just a day earlier for its workers.

The organization had to wait several weeks before a tree crew was available to take down the most dangerous hangers from the trees, he said. "It took us literally a month to get a contractor to come in and drop those," Murphy said.

Warm and wet weather prevented additional work, as there was a risk of ruining grass by driving heavy equipment over it. Once the ground froze in the first week of January, more work was done, Murphy said. He estimates that about one-quarter of the debris remains, mostly in the area closest to the YMCA. The survival of some trees is in question.

"There's not a lot of dangerous stuff left, it's just messy," Murphy said.

The work will be finished unless snow begins to pile up, he added.

Most damage at Childs Park was confined to large oaks that hadn't yet lost their leaves and caused what Murphy called "unfortunate pruning."

There are plans to do some replanting in the spring.

"We do replace trees every year," Murphy said. "We buy some, and get a lot donated."

Childs Park relies on donations of trees from individuals, often as memorials to loved ones, and from local garden centers that have an excess supply at the end of the season. All money from the Annie Childs Trust is used each year to maintain the grounds, which are for quiet enjoyment such as reading or picnicking.

Donations can be made to The Childs Park Foundation, P.O. Box 658, Hadley, MA 01035.

Look Park, too, sustained significant damage, though it was open for the annual lights display and hasn't been officially closed.

"Damage was pretty extensive and we're still working on the cleanup," said William Hildreth Jr., director of maintenance at the park.

Though it is city-owned land, Look Park is a private, nonprofit entity. Budget constraints have forced the park to do its own cleanup, but Hildreth said outside assistance may be needed.

He said several ornamental trees, including maples in front of the visitors center that had been maturing, are expected to be lost. A complete tally of the trees destroyed by the storm has not yet been done.

Hildreth said the budget for new trees is small, and the park depends on donations from local garden centers to supplement it. He is uncertain whether more trees will be donated this year to make up for the loss.

"With the financial situation we're looking to save what we can, then make a game plan for what might be lost," Hildreth said.

Ray Ellerbrook, executive director of Look Park, said the public can make donations toward tree replacement by contacting him or development director Greg Malynoski.

"With all the damage that we sustained, any financial assistance from our patrons would be sincerely welcomed," Ellerbrook said.