Our City Forest

What Our City Forest does

Our City Forest is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1994 and headquartered in San Jose, California (EIN 77-0371911). It is the leading urban forestry and environmental education nonprofit in Silicon Valley, operating a Community Nursery & Training Center at 1000 Spring St. that grows and nurtures thousands of drought-tolerant, native, and disease-resistant trees, shrubs, and grasses. The organization distributes plant material and tree-planting services through a Community Nursery retail channel, free tree grant programs targeting under-canopied census tracts in Central and East San Jose (notably the VTA-supported East Side Trees Program), community planting events, and a Planting Team that handles delivery and planting for multi-tree residential requests at $150-$200 per 15-gallon tree on a tax-deductible donation basis. Supplemental offerings include the Urban Forestry Educational Center at Martial Cottle Park, the Lawn Busters lawn-conversion program with an associated design service, an AmeriCorps climate action leadership program paying a stipend plus education award, Tree Amigos volunteer training classes, a Holiday Rent-A-Tree seasonal program, and the Cool & Green Communities Initiative focused on environmental-justice-priority neighborhoods.

The business model is nonprofit fundraising and grant-funded service delivery rather than commercial revenue capture. Revenue streams comprise (a) tax-deductible tree and plant donations from individual residents (Freemium-tiered, with free trees for residents in eligible census tracts), (b) general donations and sustaining memberships, (c) corporate volunteering and sponsorship fees, and (d) restricted grants — most notably the VTA partnership that underwrites the East Side Trees Program and the Sunnyvale Program. Operations are organized around a hub-and-spoke model: a headquarters mailing address at 1195 Clark St. anchors administration; the Community Nursery & Training Center handles production, retail, and weekend distribution; and the Urban Forestry Educational Center at Martial Cottle Park delivers workshops, classes, and community presentations. Programs span growth (nursery production), planting (permitting, selection, and delivery), care (the 3-year Tree Stewardship matching program), and education (workshops, school presentations, and Tree Amigos). Leadership is led by President Rhonda Berry.

The customer base is segmented geographically: disadvantaged neighborhood residents in under-canopied census tracts (primary), general San Jose and now Sunnyvale residents (primary), VTA-supported zone residents (secondary), and schools and community groups (secondary use-case segment). Tree selection is delivered by certified arborists applying right-tree-for-right-place expertise, and every distributed tree is matched with a Tree Steward for at least 3 years to support survival. There is no disclosed AI/ML capability, no commercial software product, no patents, no M&A history, and no equity fundraising; the organization operates as a mature, programmatically diversified 501(c)(3) with a 30+ year track record.

Name

Our City Forest

Legal name

Our City Forest

Website

https://ourcityforest.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1994

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Our City Forest is a San Jose-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit founded in 1994 that grows and distributes thousands of drought-tolerant trees and shrubs to Silicon Valley residents, runs free tree grant programs in under-canopied census tracts, and delivers urban forestry education and AmeriCorps workforce programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Urban Forestry & Environmental Services

NAICS

Support Activities for Forestry (11531), Forest Nurseries and Gathering of Forest Products (1132), Support Activities for Forestry (1153)

SIC

Agricultural Services (700), Forestry (800)

akta.pro primary industry

Urban & Community Reforestation / Street Tree Planting (AFAMACAL)

akta.pro secondary industries

Tree Planting & Transplanting (HSAIADAE), Tree Health Care (Diagnosis, Treatment, Fertilization) (HSAIADAD), Tree Pruning & Crown Management (HSAIADAA)

Keywords

• Urban forestry services
• Community tree planting
• Nursery and tree distribution
• Environmental education programs
• Nonprofit tree stewardship

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Tax-Deductible Tree Donations: Trees are available on a tax-deductible donation basis. 15-gallon trees are offered for $150-$200 donation for residents not in grant-funded areas. All plants at the Community Nursery are available on a tax-deductible donation basis.
2. Grant-Funded Free Trees: Free trees are provided to residents in eligible census tracts through grant programs (VTA-supported East Side Trees Program and Sunnyvale Program), with eligibility verified at the Community Nursery.
3. General Donations and Membership: The organization accepts donations and offers sustaining membership options to support ongoing operations and tree planting programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Our City Forest is a Silicon Valley nonprofit that grows and distributes drought-tolerant trees and shrubs from its Community Nursery, provides free trees and planting services to residents in eligible census tracts, and delivers urban forestry education and workforce development programs. It combines nursery operations, tree planting services, three-year Tree Steward matching, and education programs to expand urban tree canopy in San Jose and surrounding areas.

Product overview

Our City Forest is a nonprofit organization offering a comprehensive suite of urban forestry programs and services. The core offerings include a Community Nursery & Training Center that grows drought-tolerant trees and shrubs, a Free Trees Program providing grant-funded trees to eligible residents, and Tree Planting Services with permit assistance and planting guidance. Additional programs include Tree Stewardship (matching trees with caretakers for 3 years), Lawn Busters (lawn conversion), the Urban Forestry Education Center (workshops and classes), an AmeriCorps climate leadership program, Tree Amigos volunteer education classes, Holiday Rent-A-Tree, and the Cool & Green Communities Initiative targeting under-canopied neighborhoods. The organization operates multiple facilities including the Community Nursery at 1000 Spring St. San Jose and the Urban Forestry Educational Center at Martial Cottle Park.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Community Nursery & Training Center Physical nursery facility at 1000 Spring St., San Jose that grows thousands of drought-tolerant, native, and disease-resistant tree and shrub species and offers them to residents on a tax-deductible donation basis, with accompanying workshops on planting, care, and propagation.
• Free Trees Program Grant-funded program providing free 15-gallon residential street and yard trees to residents in eligible census tracts in Central and East San Jose, including free planting or delivery service by the Planting Team for orders of five or more trees with required arborist consultation.
• Tree Planting Services Service assisting residents with tree permits, tree provision, planting demonstrations, and stewardship coaching to ensure proper planting and long-term care for park strips, front yards, and backyards.
• Tree Stewardship Program Three-year post-planting care program that matches each distributed tree with a Tree Steward who provides watering, pruning, and health monitoring for at least three years to ensure long-term tree survival.
• Lawn Busters Program Lawn conversion program that helps residents replace water-intensive turf lawns with drought-tolerant trees, shrubs, and understory plantings suited to Silicon Valley's climate.
• Urban Forestry Education Center Educational facility at Martial Cottle Park (391 Chynoweth Ave, San Jose) that delivers free workshops, Tree Amigos classes, and educational events on urban forestry for schools, community groups, and residents.
• Holiday Rent-A-Tree Seasonal program that rents live trees to residents for holiday use as a sustainable alternative to purchasing cut trees.
• Cool & Green Communities Initiative Targeted initiative providing free trees and planting services to community members living in the most under-canopied census tracts in San Jose to address environmental inequity and the urban heat island effect.

Named customers1 record

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• VTA (Valley Transportation Authority)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVTA supports the East Side Trees Program providing free 15-gallon residential street and yard trees to eligible census tracts, along with free planting or delivery service by Our City Forest's Planting Team.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Friends of the Urban Forest: San Francisco-based nonprofit that plants and cares for street trees through community engagement, volunteer stewardship, and grants — same urban-tree-equity mission and community-driven model as Our City Forest, in an adjacent Bay Area market.
• TreePeople: Los Angeles-based nonprofit focused on urban forestry, tree planting, and environmental education; comparable model combining nursery operations, volunteer programs, and education to address urban canopy in underserved neighborhoods.
• Casey Trees: Washington DC-area nonprofit dedicated to planting, caring for, and advocating for urban trees; offers a similar mix of free tree distribution, arborist-led planting services, and education programming.
• Canopy: Palo Alto-based nonprofit that plants and cares for trees in mid-Peninsula communities through volunteer-driven plantings and education; near-identical geographic profile and community-nursery-linked operations.
• Trees Atlanta: Atlanta nonprofit operating a tree nursery, planting programs, and urban-forestry education with significant volunteer and AmeriCorps-style workforce components — directly comparable operating model to Our City Forest.
• Greening of Detroit: Detroit nonprofit operating large-scale urban tree planting, workforce development, and education programs targeting under-canopied neighborhoods — highly analogous mission, model, and equity focus.

Regional players

• Sacramento Tree Foundation: California nonprofit focused on urban tree planting and stewardship in the Sacramento region; same state-level climate context and comparable community-tree-equity mission, but serves a different metro.

Broad incumbents

• Davey Tree Expert Company: Large national commercial arborist and tree-care firm offering residential and municipal tree planting, pruning, and care services at scale — overlapping capability set but operating for-profit across a much broader portfolio.
• Bartlett Tree Experts: Major commercial tree-care company providing arborist-led planting, pruning, and tree health services nationwide; comparable arborist expertise and service categories but for-profit and multi-segment.

Emerging players

• Keep Growing Detroit: Detroit-based urban agriculture and forestry nonprofit focused on community-led planting and food-forestry overlap; partial mission overlap on community tree planting and education, but narrower geographic and program scope.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Instagraminstagram.com/ourcityforest
• Xx.com/OurCityForest
• Facebookfacebook.com/OurCityForest
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ourcityforest

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Our City Forest