Parkway Partners celebrates 31 years of service in rebuilding and preserving the beautification of neutral grounds, playgrounds, parks, urban forest and 33 active community gardens in New Orleans. As always, Parkway Partners initiatives continue to emphasize environmental responsibility and education, along with community and economic development. Through 30 years, Parkway Partners programs have accomplished many goals, including:
- 10,981 trees planted through ReLeaf New Orleans
- Over 600 partners committed to long-term management of New Orleans’ neutral grounds.
- 143 Tree Troopers guide neighborhood tree planting and maintenance
- 40 community gardens are producing fresh vegetables, herbs and flowers.
- Over 3,000 students work in schoolyard gardens that support math and science
- Thousands of Live Oaks are fertilized and protected from termites and Buckmoth Caterpillars
- Monthly Second Saturday educational programs provide plant - based education for adults
- Restoration of Lee Circle was completed in collaboration with Taylor Energy.
- Developed the Cancer Survivor’s Plaza and restored four historical parks; Annunciation Square, Washington Square Park, Jackson Square and Palmer Park
Parkway Partners was founded in 1982, during the administration of Mayor Dutch Morial, by Flo Schornstein. At the time Flo, who was the Director of the Parkways Commission, created Parkway Partners in response to the city budget cuts that inhibited New Orleans’ ability to adequately maintain its public green spaces.
Parkway Partners serves as a liaison between the city and its people, mobilizing citizens to maintain public green spaces and monuments, providing environmental education for children and adults and fostering civic pride. Parkway Partners would like to thank the community for their efforts to support their programs, including:
ReLeaf New Orleans: Our trained Tree Troopers lead the way through neighborhoods and major corridors to increase the growth of trees. Our ReLeaf program is an initiative that was born out of Hurricane Katrina’s destruction of New Orleans’ urban forest. This program has planted over 10,000 trees since December 2005.
Schoolyard Gardens: Our students take their education outdoors to reinforcecurriculum skills while learning the value of working together and growing food. Parkway Partners’ Schoolyard Gardens Program incorporates the garden into teachers’ curricula. The gardens are used to teach Math, Science, Art and Language Arts. Students get to experience outdoor learning activities while also reaping the benefits of learning about long term planning and the importance of working as a team.
Community Gardeners: Sustainable practices are from our gardeners that grow food close to home for neighbors, family and friends in neighborhoods throughout New Orleans. Our Urban Gardening Program includes Urban Farms, Community Gardens and Orchards, and some gardens may incorporate all of the above. There are 40 active gardens and orchards in the Parkway Partners network, and this number is growing.
Neutral Ground Adoptions: Businesses and private citizens work together to create clean and attractive green spaces. Rooted in our origin, it is a strategy replicated across the nation. Community organizations, businesses and private citizens can “adopt” a park, playground, or a neutral ground, which they are then responsible for maintaining for a year.
Save Our Trees: A program for spraying for Buck Moth caterpillars, treating for termites and fertilizing our iconic oaks. We target the trees located between the sidewalk and the street, but we will spray in any public or private space.
Second Saturday: A monthly program that provides adults with plant-based education to help New Orleanians reinstate their home landscapes. All Second Saturday Programs take place on the second Saturday of each month and are held at Parkway Partners, which is located at Location: 1137 Baronne St, New Orleans, LA. The gates are open from 9am-noon, with the speaker presenting at 10am. Every discussion is accompanied by a plant sale where the plants reflects that day’s topic and the current planting season.
