FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Buffalo, N.Y. – The Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy (BOPC) made two announcements regarding the South Park Arboretum as part of their Arbor Day celebrations today.
The first of the announcements is that the South Park Arboretum has secured Level One Accreditation by The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program and The Morton Arboretum. The accreditation is awarded for achieving standards of professional practice deemed important for arboreta and botanic gardens. The ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta at various levels of development, capacity, and professionalism. Buffalo Olmsted’s South Park Arboretum is also now recognized as an accredited arboretum in the Morton Register of Arboreta, a database of the world’s arboreta and gardens dedicated to woody plants!
Secondly, BOPC is announcing that Hoerr Schaudt will be producing the conceptual design work for the proposed South Park Arboretum Nursery Complex. Hoerr Schaudt’s work will contribute toward BOPC’s vision of restoring the South Park Arboretum while creating a new community gateway to South Park on the Ridge Road corridor. The South Park Arboretum Nursery Complex will welcome the public into the Arboretum and will include a tree and woody shrub container nursery, equipment storage, educational spaces, and offices for the Curator, operations staff, and future team members. The development of the South Park Arboretum Nursery Complex is part of the second phase of a comprehensive, long-term 11-phased project. The overall project will see the historic Arboretum restored to a significant cultural landscape with a design inspired by the original plans of Frederick Law Olmsted.
“With today’s announcements the South Park Arboretum is proudly reflecting BOPC’s mission to steward the City of Buffalo’s historic Olmsted park and parkway system to welcome and benefit all.” Said Executive Director, Stephanie Crockatt. “We are truly fortunate to have one of the few Olmsted designed arboreta here in Buffalo, and as such it is vital we restore it, and care for it for all who visit to enjoy. It is truly exciting to see the restoration vision coming to life.”
”Together with the Hoerr Schaudt conceptual design team, BOPC will uphold the historical legacy and design principles of Frederick Law Olmsted in the creation of a Nursery Complex. Celebrating the diversity of our neighbors and the biodiversity of our newly proposed container nursery, South Park Arboretum will continue to be cherished for the public health and community asset that it affords all.” Said Arboretum Curator Margaret Lapp. “Earning the distinction as a Level I ArbNet accredited Arboretum will further strengthen our national and global ties to the arboreta and botanical garden communities, aiding in our ever-increasing pursuit of knowledge surrounding the power of connecting people and plants.”
“On behalf of Hoerr Schaudt, we’re thrilled to be the landscape architect selected for the South Park Arboretum Nursery Complex. It’s an honor to have the opportunity to contribute to a park with such a historic legacy, and we will strive to best uphold the Olmsted intention and Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy’s vision. Through Hoerr Schaudt’s work centered around horticulture, we envision a design that will leverage the connection of people and nature to its fullest extent. Our team and design partners are excited for the future of the South Park Arboretum and the transformation this project will bring to the Buffalo community.” Stan Szwalek PLA, Principal
This announcement is the culminating event of Olmsted Week, celebrating Earth Day, Olmsted’s 201st birthday, and Arbor Day. The Conservancy thanks National Fuel for their significant support of Olmsted Week, as well as all of the donors, volunteers, and park friends who participated in the week’s activities.
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About the Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy
The Buffalo Olmsted Parks Conservancy is the first nonprofit organization in the nation, through a unique public-private partnership, to manage, operate and maintain an entire urban park system consisting of more than 850 acres of beautifully designed historic parks, parkways and circles. The Conservancy is an independent not-for-profit, community organization whose mission is to steward Buffalo’s historic Olmsted park system to welcome and benefit all. To accomplish this, the Conservancy collaborates with community and strategic partners, advocates for quality parks for all, and enhances the park system through beautification, maintenance, and capital projects. More than 2.5 million visits occur in Buffalo’s Olmsted Park system annually for recreation, relaxation, and rejuvenation.
The Buffalo Olmsted Park System includes:
Six parks: Cazenovia, Delaware, Front, Martin Luther King, Jr., Riverside, and South
Seven parkways: Bidwell, Chapin, Lincoln, McKinley, Porter, Red Jacket, and Richmond
Eight landscaped traffic circles: Agassiz, Colonial, Ferry, Gates, McClellan, McKinley, Soldiers, and Symphony
Smaller spaces: Days, Heacock and Prospect
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About ArbNet
ArbNet is an interactive, collaborative, international community of arboreta. ArbNet facilitates the sharing of knowledge, experience, and other resources to help arboreta meet their institutional goals and works to raise professional standards through the ArbNet Arboretum Accreditation Program. The accreditation program, sponsored and coordinated by The Morton Arboretum in Lisle, Illinois in cooperation with American Public Gardens Association and Botanic Gardens Conservation International, is the only global initiative to officially recognize arboreta based on a set of professional standards. The program offers four levels of accreditation, recognizing arboreta of various degrees of development, capacity and professionalism. Standards include planning, governance, public access, programming and tree science, planting and conservation. More information is available at www.arbnet.org.
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About Hoerr Schaudt
At Hoerr Schaudt, we design beautiful, purposeful gardens that connect people, site, and season. Gardens elicit joy, soothe our souls, and become places where we interact with each other and the world around us. Drawing upon centuries of time-honored tradition, our work layers botanical silhouettes to shape space and create settings that artfully blend the natural and built environments be it a residence, streetscape, campus, city park, or botanical garden. Based in Chicago, with offices in Kansas City and Los Angeles, Hoerr Schaudt continues its 30-year mission to create gardens that thrive and delight. Learn more at www.hoerrschaudt.com.
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