TD tree donation helps green, shade Windsor's riverfront

Windsor's waterfront will be a little shadier thanks to a donation of trees that will eventually be planted just next to the Ambassador Bridge.

TD Canada Trust, on Thursday, gave$15,000 to the city from the bank's Friends of the Environment Foundation. The money will pay for the purchase and maintenance of about 10 trees that are native to the region.

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City foresterPaul Giroux saidresidents can learn more about the trees, which include a sugar maple, red maple, fir and oak, from the plaques that will be installed with them.

"Peoplecan educatethemselvesonwhat the types of trees are native to our area," he said.

These types of donations help the city pay for some of the fringe programs that tend to get cut in difficult financial times, explained Mayor Drew Dilkens.

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"When you start looking at ways to trim that budget, these are the types of projects that end up getting trimmed," he said. "This is a real great initiative. It will go a long way to help us greening the waterfront."

Funding for the Friends of the Environment Foundation is raised by customers donating money, which is then matched by TD.

The trees will be planted at Ambassador Park, located at Riverside Drive West and Vista Crescent.