The Rocky Run Gardens
The Rocky Run Gardens is a community-based project designed to create and maintain open and accessible gardens around the areas surrounding the Rocky Run dog-run which is located inside the Ft. Washington Park in the neighborhood of Washington Heights in New York City.
The goal of this gardening project is to integrate the work and participation of many volunteers and local groups to build community through the implementation of environmentally sound garden designs and sustainable planning practices.
The Rocky Run Gardens Story
The Rocky Run Gardens were originally created in 2004 with the official designation of the area as a dog run by the New York City Department of Parks and Recreation.
Prior to the designation the dog run and the installation of series of gardens flanking the dog run area, the site was a center of drug usage and other illicit activities.
In 2004, a group of about forty community residents got together and decided to clean up the area and clear the site of garbage, drug paraphernalia, and other debris found throughout the area.
In fact, Mrs. Karen Renaudin (seeing on the picture below holding a friend's paw) pointed out this neighborhood benefited from the creation of the dog run because first and foremost, "it brings the community together."
The clean-up activity preceding the installation of the dog run and the three gardens acted as a catalyst for neighbors to unify around a shared need and through this process formed a community. As the Rocky Run slogan points out:
"For the love of our dogs, we set out to build a fence...
... and ended up building a community."
The Rocky Run Gardens Rehabilitation and Community Partnership project employs gardening as a unifying platform to coalesce the work of a series of local groups and individuals from around the area to sustain both the Rocky Run Gardens and the surrounding local environment.
The goal of this gardening project is to integrate the work and participation of many volunteers and local groups to build community through the implementation of environmentally sound garden designs and sustainable planning practices.
Contact Us
To learn more about the Rocky Run Gardens, please register and continue reading about our Rocky Run Gardens Rehabilitation and Community Partnership Project.
