On a sunny Tuesday in Charlotte, we joined dozens of our community partners to celebrate the Historic West End’s new clean air garden. Community leaders Ron Ross and Mattie Marshall cut the ribbon to officially open the garden to the public.
The new garden is part of the larger Historic West End Green District we’re building with community partners aimed at providing clean air awareness programs, expanding electric vehicle infrastructure, and generating green solutions for the community.
With the implementation of beautification projects such as this we will embolden this community and be an impetus for additional projects to occur that will improve the quality of life for the residents and visitors to this community.
Like many BIPOC communities (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color), residents of Charlotte’s Historic West End live with a longstanding legacy of redlining. This has contributed to air pollution exposure from industrial zoning and highway construction that continues to impact the community today. The Green District Initiative is a joint campaign to expand green infrastructure, broaden air awareness, and protect community health.
The community garden represents the first green infrastructure project within the Historic West End Green District intiative. But bringing visibility and awareness to the benefits of green spaces is only the beginning of what’s possible. We’re continuing to build our Green District partnerships in Charlotte and beyond, with the goal of providing air pollution relief to North Carolina’s most vulnerable communities.
The garden was designed by groundworks studio and constructed by Tim Johnson Landscaping, Inc, with funding provided by the Wells Fargo Foundation.
