Flora improvements may soon be coming to the city of La Salle.

With the cooperation and sponsorship of the La Salle Business Association, the City of La Salle applied for a grant to fund a Downtown Tree Inventory Management Plan.

“The core point is pretty simple: if we want a stronger downtown economy, we need streets where people want to spend more time,” LBA spokesman Chris Duncan said. “Trees and other landscaping make that happen.”

The grant application for up to $37,310 was submitted by the City to the Trees Forever organization, which is funded by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

If approved, the grant would focus on First Street, Eighth Street, Civic Road and Rotary Park, though the entire city is eligible.

Duncan said that investing in improvements to the city’s streetscape will benefit La Salle’s downtown business district.

“Our current trees are attractive and ecologically diverse, but they don’t necessarily fit well on a shopping street,” he said. “On a retail street, trees and landscaping aren’t just decoration, they’re infrastructure.”

City officials and the LBA say some trees lack uniform species or spacing and have become a nuisance for residents, motorists and business owners.

Duncan said some trees attract nesting birds or bees, deterring residents from walking downtown, while others are too tall and block business signage or windows.

Duncan offered a blueprint for improving the streetscape: “What works best are large, fast-growing, shade trees planted consistently and closely together to create a consistent, constant canopy over the street.”

The LBA expects to hear back within two weeks.