For the past 12 years, the Village has been certified as a Tree City USA by the Arbor Day Foundation. Certification recognizes a municipality’s commitment to create and maintain tree cover. It requires a municipality to hold an annual Arbor Day celebration. In 2025, Cayuga Heights celebrated Arbor Day by planting a flowering dogwood (Cornus florida) near the entrance to Marcham Hall. The Village also celebrated Arbor Day by partnering with Kendal at Ithaca, which has achieved certification by the Arbor Day Foundation as a Tree Campus Healthcare, in a free tree seedling giveaway. Kendal gave away seedlings to staff, and the Village gave away seedlings to residents and staff. Seedlings, which were sourced from Meadowview Tree Farm, Naples, NY, were comprised of four native tree species: red maple, sugar maple, swamp white oak, and paper birch. In the Village, approximately 80 seedlings were given away. Based on the demand for seedlings and the feedback from those receiving them, the giveaway was a success and may be repeated in the future.
The local News Station WENY covered the celebration and interviewed Fred Cowett, you can see the whole video here.
