Wilmington is a place of abundant innovation. No seriously, We’re not trying to brand but we’re constantly finding new and different ways to reach and achieve city-wide goals. Now, Wilmington has teamed up with the private sector to GO GREEN and to restore jobs to the community while doing so! Give back to our Mother Earth AND earn a living!
How? Wilmington has teamed up with partners such as the Delaware Center for Horticulture, which hosts a return-to-work program within the city.
Summarized from the full article on www.wilmingtonde.gov.
Wilmington Mayor Mike Purzycki joined City Council President Dr. Hanifa Shabazz, 5th District Council Member Va’Shun “Vash” Turner, and the City’s Green Wilmington partners to complete the cleanup of a vacant lot at the corner of 5th and Madison Streets. The event kicked off a public greening effort in Wilmington that is a continuation of the Mayor’s ongoing Beautiful City and West Center City initiatives.
“This joint effort is a wonderful example of people with a common objective coming together to help make Wilmington a cleaner, more attractive city, and also improve the quality of life for the residents of West Center City,” said Mayor Purzycki. “Thanks to partners like the Delaware Center for Horticulture and its return-to-work program, individuals are gaining valuable skills and work experience in green jobs while our neighborhoods benefit from cleaner, safer environments.”
“This was very big for this community and the City of Wilmington,” said Council Member Turner. “We speak about public-private partnerships all the time, [but] a lot of time we don’t know what that looks like. Now we do have a representation of what that looks like. This was a community effort. This was private partners and public entities coming together to get this done.”
Multiple city agencies, including the Department of Real Estate and Housing, have helped to identify and assist with the properties chosen for the Green Wilmington initiative. The lot at 5th and Madison Streets is composed of three separate parcels – two owned by Interfaith Community Housing of Delaware and the third owned by the City of Wilmington – that are being combined for this project. The Wilmington Neighborhood Conservancy Land Bank, which is assisting the effort with the transfer, acquisition and/or disposition of properties, will ultimately take ownership of the three parcels.
“We are so excited to be a part of this great initiative in West Center City,” said Laura Semmelroth, Creative District Strategist for Wilmington Renaissance Corporation. “Turning vacant lots into vibrant community spaces is a priority in the Creative District and we are glad to see this effort replicated in the neighborhood next door.”
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